Helping Hands
by jezabel1971
Summary: A slightly AU 2x1 gettogether with a twist...Heero and Duo stay a house that is rumored to be haunted. The problem is, the rumor happens to be true. A little 4x3 in later chapters. FINALLY UPDATED!
1. Default Chapter

Author's Notes:

I wrote this some time back and right now I'm just making some corrections. Maybe eventually I'll actually get to the point of wanting to continue this story. I'm sorry, but I'm not quite there, yet.

Okay, a few notes for the uninitiated. Heero is Japanese, which most people know, and, no offense, but people who are speaking a language which is not their first language, tend to lapse into their own language on occasion. So, this story is sprinkled with a few Japanese words I know, and that Heero is known for. Duo is his partner, so he has picked up a few words himself, but not very often. Here's a list of those words and their meanings, in no particular order:

Oi - Duo's way of saying "Hey, you!"

Hn - Heero's response to a lot of things; Duo usually assumes it means yes, but it actually is more "maybe yes, maybe no"

Baka - idiot, Heero's pet name for Duo; a name followed by "no baka", like "Duo no baka", means "Duo, you idiot"

Omae o korosu - another of Heero's favorites, it means "I'm going to kill you"

Nani - what, as an exclamation or question

Iie - no

Hai - yes

Gomen - sorry

Ai shiteru - means "I love you"; I've been told it's a rather desperate way of saying it, but considering that these are boys caught up in fighting a war and they could die any day, I think it fits

Koi - no, not the fish, it's short for koibito, which means lover

Ninmu ryoukai - "Mission accepted"; Heero is considered the Perfect Soldier and the mission is ususally all he thinks about, so, yes, this is another one of his favorite phrases, along with "mission complete" which isn't in this story yet, and I can't remember how to spell it

Okay, now on to the story.

Helping Hands part 1

"Oh, wow!" Duo's eyes widened with awe and delight as he got his first look at the house where they would be staying for the next few weeks. "Oi, Heero, are you sure this is the right place? It looks like some haunted house from an old horror movie!"

"Hn," responded his fellow pilot.

Taking this as a yes, the braided boy began making his way up the overgrown path to the house, chattering nonstop and describing everything he saw to his companion, as if Heero didn't have eyes to see what was before them.

The old house was huge, an old mansion that was in surprisingly good shape for its age. It sat on a hill, surrounded by forest. A single gravel road led down the hill and wound through the forest, toward the town that was a couple of miles away. At the bottom of the hill, an ancient iron gate blocked the road, closing the gap in a crumbling brick wall that surrounded the house, several acres of forest, and a good sized lake. The deep, dark waters of the lake had made a good hiding place for the Gundams.

The two boys made their way up the path from the lake to the house, stepping carefully to keep from tripping in the growing darkness. Heero pulled a key out from somewhere, unlocked the door, and motioned for Duo to precede him into the house. The lights didn't work, so both pilots pulled flashlights from their duffle bags and turned them on.

"I'll get the breakers," Duo said. "In the basement, right? Access through the kitchen?"

"Hn. I'll see if the supplies Quatre ordered have arrived."

Several minutes later, Duo exited the basement and began wandering through the house, turning on lights, muttering to himself, and looking for his partner. He found him in the formal dining room, glaring at several boxes and holding a couple of sheets of paper in his hand.

"What's up?" Duo asked curiously.

Heero's glare promptly transferred to Duo and he indicated the sheets of paper. "The idiots stayed long enough to air out the house a little, make sure the place had running water, the lights worked, and the beds had new mattresses and then they fled."

"Huh? Fled? What exactly did they flee from? And I thought the deal Quatre made with the previous owner included cleaning the place from top to bottom and stocking it with all of the necessities?"

"It did. The linens, canned goods, and stuff for the bathrooms and kitchen are all in those boxes. They put the perishables in the fridge and ran."

"Heero, why did they run?"

"They were afraid of the ghost."

tbc


	2. Part 2

Author's Notes:

I forgot this in the first part, but I don't own Gundam Wing or any of the characters. You guys knew that, though, right? Sorry the chapters are so short, but they get longer as the fic progresses. Oh, and I'm a firm believer in Duo's intelligence, so don't be too surprised, okay? Enjoy and please review. 

Helping Hands part 2 

Duo stared at Heero for a moment, slack jawed, and then burst out laughing.

"Oh, come on, man! A ghost? You have got to be kidding me."

Heero's glare intensified and so did Duo's laughter. Finally, "Baka. Omae o korosu." At that familiar threat, Duo managed to regain control of his laughter. 

"Oi, Heero, you don't really believe in ghosts, do you?" 

Heero glared at him a minute longer, then, "I don't know if they exist or not. Now, drop it, and help me unpack some of these boxes."

Without another word, the two moved towards the boxes and began opening them. Heero had reached the number eight on his mental countdown when Duo spoke again. "So, tell me what you know about this ghost."

"What makes you think I know anything about her?"

"Besides the fact that you just referred to it as her?" Duo smirked. "You weren't really surprised that they had bugged out as soon as they possibly could without breaking the conditions of the purchase agreement. Besides, Heero, I know you. You thoroughly research all of our safe houses to make sure we don't have any problems with ownership claims, nosy neighbors, emergency escape routes and the like. Now, quit stalling and spill."

Heero frowned. He hadn't realized that any of the other pilots were aware of that particular habit of his.

Duo sighed heavily, in response to Heero's reaction. He correctly interpreted Heero's expression and knew he'd have to take care of this small distraction before Heero would tell him anything about the ghost. He grinned wickedly. He had an idea that was sure to get Heero to want to change the subject quickly.

"Heero," he began, then frowned slightly when Heero continued to stare off into space, his own frown gradually turning into a glare. "Heero! Oi, earth to Heero." Duo waved a hand in front of Heero's eyes. Heero started and turned a full-blown glare on him. Duo grinned back at him, totally unfazed. "I'm the only one who knows you do that." Heero's glare was replaced with surprise that quickly vanished into an impassive mask. Duo's grin grew broader.

"What, you think that all of the times I lean on your shoulder when you're at that damn laptop that I never actually look at the screen?" Heero grew uneasy as Duo's expression changed, becoming teasing. Teasing and something else. Something Heero wasn't sure he wanted to identify.

"Why do you think I keep leaning on you like that, then? Do think I'm just enjoying the heat of your body as I press against you? The feel of your bare skin underneath my fingertips? The scent of your hair as it tickles my nose?" 

Duo would have continued, but Heero stopped him. Heero's eyes had become wide and slightly panicked. He looked around the room quickly, almost frantically, before blurting out, "Ghost! You...you wanted to know about the ghost, right?"

Duo looked at him for a moment. Heero's breathing was a little fast, normal impassive mask completely gone. He looked like he would bolt if Duo made a sudden move.

Duo sighed silently and tried to rein in his desperate longings for the other pilot. If Heero ever found out that those really were the reasons that Duo was always leaning on him, then Heero probably would bolt. Duo suppressed another sigh as he considered the thought that if Heero didn't bolt, then he might actually make good on his numerous death threats. Duo slipped his grinning mask back into place and turned his attention back to his partner. His grin became more real as he realized that his plan to get Heero to tell him about the ghost had worked even better than he thought it would. "Okay, Heero. Tell me about the ghost."

tbc


	3. Part 3

Author's Notes:

I don't own the G-boys or anything to do with Gundam Wing, of course. I'm just borrowing them for a bit. 

Helping Hands part 3 

Heero breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed a little. He didn't want to think about the feel of Duo's hands on his skin and he was very glad Duo had agreed to change the subject. Impassive expression firmly back in place, he took a deep breath and hoped his voice would be its usual, steady monotone when he spoke. "Her name was Katherine...Katherine Taylor. She died over 300 years ago. Nobody knows exactly what happened, but the family heard a scream in the middle of the night. When they looked for the source of the sound, they found her body at the bottom of the stairs. She had evidently fallen and died of a broken neck."

"Evidently?" 

"Yes. The day of her funeral, her husband went insane and tried to kill the rest of the family. He kept screaming that one of them had taken his Katherine from him and he would make sure that that person paid for it. He didn't know which one of them was guilty, so he was going to kill all of them. He was restrained and checked into an asylum, where he eventually died, years later." 

Duo was fascinated, although he wasn't quite sure why. "You keep saying the family. How many of them were there?" 

"Katherine and her husband, Benjamin, Benjamin's parents, and his three siblings. Two sisters and a brother." 

"Did Benjamin actually kill any of them?"

"No." 

Duo glared at him. "Come on, Heero. Quit making me play twenty questions! Tell me the rest of it."

Heero glared right back at him. "Hn. Fine. The night after the funeral, something happened. Nobody would ever say what, but everyone packed up in a hurry and left the house that night. They all absolutely refused to go near the house ever again. That's when all of rumors about the ghost and the journal started. They say that Katherine was pushed down the stairs. Supposedly, her murderer kept a journal and confessed to the crime in it. Katherine is said to walk the halls at night, reenacting her murder and calling for her husband, Benjamin, to find the journal and bring her murderer to justice. Her spirit will not rest until the true identity of her killer is known. Only then will she be reunited with her husband." 

Heero fell silent and Duo stared at him in shock. "Nani?" he asked, irritably. "You wanted to know, so I told you." 

Duo shook his head in disbelief. "Damn. I finally get you talking about something other than a mission and I find out you're a closet romantic."

"NANI? What in the hell are you talking about?!"

"Come off it, Heero! 'Only then will she be reunited with her husband,' " Duo mimicked him. "You've fallen for that story, hook, line, and sinker. You're actually hoping that it's true and that someday her spirit will be set free to rejoin her husband, if it hasn't happened already."

Heero glared at him so hard that Duo, who was usually immune to Heero's glares, actually felt it. "I am a soldier," Heero said, voice cold enough to freeze a forest fire in its tracks. "I am not a romantic, closet or otherwise. Enough talk. We have work to do." He picked up a box containing sheets and blankets and headed out of the room and up the stairs to the bedrooms.

Duo, left behind in the dining room, shook his head ruefully. "Duo no baka," he whispered. "He finally shows an interest in something other than the mission and you mock him for it. I knew he had emotions hidden somewhere behind that cold facade. I just don't understand why a 300-year-old ghost story would get him to reveal them. He obviously sympathizes with the ghost, but why?" He shook his head again and began ferrying boxes into the kitchen.

Upstairs, Heero was making the beds in a couple of the bedrooms and muttering to himself. "Duo no baka. I am not a romantic, just because I know what it feels like to be trapped by circumstances beyond your control. Playing a part, and unable to get free without help. I know what it is like to be lost, alone, lonely, and so very empty inside. Knowing that the only one who can fill that void is beyond your reach." 

Heero caught a glimpse of himself in the vanity mirror, eyes wide and haunted. "Duo, help me," he whispered as he stood there, frozen, looking into his own lost eyes, and seeing nothing but emptiness reflected back at him. He closed his eyes and took a deep, shuddering breath. When he opened them and looked back into the mirror again, the impassive face of the Perfect Soldier stared back at him. He turned and went back to his work.

tbc..


	4. Part 4

Author's Notes:

I don't own them, just playing with them for a while. Of course, you knew that. Okay, now that that's out of the way, I just wanted to let you know that it will be a couple more chapters before the fic starts earning it's rating. The chapters start getting longer, too. Stay with me until then, okay? Enjoy!

Helping Hands part 4 

An hour later, Heero finished his work and went back down the stairs to see what Duo was up to. He found him in the kitchen, heating up some soup for their dinner. Duo was quiet for once, and Heero couldn't help but wonder how long it would last. They sat down at the bar in the kitchen and began to eat. They were almost through eating before Duo finally spoke. "Heero, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have mocked you."

Heero looked at him for a moment before responding. "Hn. Forget it. It isn't important."

Duo started to say something and then changed his mind. He looked thoughtful for a minute and then said, "Heero, may I ask you something?" Heero just looked at him, face expressionless, waiting.

"How did you find out so much about the ghost? It isn't the kind of thing that would be in police reports or her husband's medical records, if you went so far as to check into those. So, where did you get your info?" 

"The real estate agent."

"Huh?" 

"The real estate agent. I e-mailed her, asking about the history of the house, after I noticed that the house had changed hands a great number of times. The owners who did keep the house for any length of time never lived here. When I requested an explanation, she told me about Katherine. She considered herself something of an expert on the subject and was quite willing to tell me everything she knew. After she realized that telling me wasn't going to cause her to lose the sale, anyway."

Duo looked at him searchingly. To Heero's surprise, there was no amusement in his eyes or expression. "Katherine," he said softly. "She's a real person to you, isn't she," he stated. "Whether she really exists or not."

Heero looked at him, slightly confused. "Duo, she was a real person. I checked and there are records indicating the existence of a woman named Katherine Taylor, who died in this house over 300 years ago."

"That's not what I meant," Duo sighed. "Never mind. It's late and I'm exhausted. Where am I sleeping?"

"Top of the stairs, second door to the right. I'm sleeping in the next room." 

"Fine. You want to sleep by the stairs, go for it. I fixed dinner, so you get the dishes. Have fun and good night." Heero watched Duo as he walked away. He paused near the door and looked back. "One more question, Heero. Why does her story affect you so much?"

Duo stood there, waiting, not really expecting an answer. Heero gathered their dirty dishes and headed for the sink. Duo had turned again to leave and was almost out the door when Heero's voice stopped him. "She and I share similar fates."

Duo whipped around, braid flying, to stare at Heero in shock. Heero stood with his back to him, stiff, hands clenching the countertop so hard that Duo could hear it groan in protest. Heero hadn't meant to say that aloud.

With that realization, Duo found himself able to move again. Without a word, he turned and made his way to his room. Once there, he began pacing back and forth, talking to himself and trying to figure out what Heero had meant. "Similar fates? How in the hell can an 18-year-old guy have a fate similar to that of a 300-year-old ghost? She supposedly reenacts her murder at night, going through the same thing over and over again and always with the same result. Then, she starts begging for help and the one person she wants to help her is never going to answer, since he's dead. Argh! I don't get it!"

While Duo paced, Heero quickly took care of the dishes and made his way up to his own room. He paused outside his room and looked at Duo's closed door. He could hear the braided pilot pacing back and forth and muttering, although he couldn't make out the words. Shaking his head, Heero entered his room. He still couldn't believe he had actually said that where Duo could hear him. 

"No," he said aloud. "I won't think about that. I won't think about him." With that, Heero deliberately forced himself to think about other things. Possible upgrades for Wing, the next target he might be assigned. Anything but Duo and the emptiness he felt inside. Shortly after entering his room, he lie down and fell asleep.

A couple of hours later, Duo was still wide-awake, and still muttering, although he had stopped pacing and flopped down on the bed instead. He stared up at the ceiling and continued trying to figure out exactly what Heero had meant. "Come on, Duo, you're not an idiot. The answer's got to be there."

More time passed.

"Oh, to hell with it! I'll try and figure it out tomorrow. I wonder what Quatre would say about this. Too bad he's out on a mission with Trowa and Wufei. At least Heero and I are getting to take a break away from the missions. They are getting so monotonous. Go destroy this Oz facility, go destroy that Oz facility. The same thing, over and over, ne.ver...any...thing...different?"

Duo shot upright, eyes wide with shocked comprehension, breath harsh and fast. "Oh, my God! That's what he meant! But...if he drew a parallel between her haunting and his missions...Does that mean that he's silently begging for someone to help set him free? Someone that he thinks will never help him? Or can't?" Duo drew his legs up to his chest, wrapped his arms around them, and began rocking back and forth on the bed as his thoughts became more anguished. "Heero, Heero, who? Who is it that you need to save you? Is it Relena? No, it couldn't be her. She would give you whatever you needed. Wait. Maybe I shouldn't be asking who, but, what. What is it that you need? The ghost requires truth, but somehow I don't think that's the right answer for you." 

Somewhere in the house, a clock chimed once. It was 1:00 in the morning. Duo was so lost in his thoughts that he never heard the soft pad of bare feet out in the hall. He never heard the sound of a woman's voice, quietly singing an old love song, as she made her way toward the stairs. Nor did he hear when both voice and footsteps came to an abrupt halt directly outside his bedroom door.

tbc.. 


	5. Part 5

Author's Notes:

Okay, to clarify a couple of things. One of them is that, as I said in the author's notes, Duo doesn't speak very much Japanese in my fic, but Heero is fluent in both Japanese and English, so that means most of the conversations are in English. Also, this is an AU fic. The boys are all around 18 years old and have been fighting for the past 3 or so years. They have teamed up and work with one another on various missions. Heero and Duo are partners and so are Quatre and Trowa. Wufei either works with the others or alone, depending on the needs of the mission. Those are the main points, all of which actually come out later in the fic. Zechs, Treize, Relena, and the other characters do not appear in this fic, so I haven't bothered to decide what they have been up to over the years.

Also, I tend to change POV a lot in this story, in case you haven't already noticed. I did intend to warn you guys of that earlier, but forgot. Sorry about that. Another thing is that, while I try to keep the boys in character, I'm not always successful. I know that, but I've done the best that I can as I understand the characters. In this part, however, I freely admit, Duo is out of character. Sorry, but I couldn't resist. Again, Parts 5 and 6 are fairly short. Part 7 is actually lemon/lime and is almost 3 times longer than part 6, when it isn't cut. The version I'm posting here is cut, so that it has an M rating instead of NC17, or X, I think is what they are using now. If you want the uncut version, it's on mediaminer. Oh, and the ghost is an original character. She isn't Trowa's sister from the circus, or any other GW character. Hopefully, that fact won't chase you off and you will continue to read my story. Now, on to part 5! I hope you enjoy it!

Helping Hands part 5 

Katherine stood in front of her youngest sister-in-law's bedroom door and tried to decide what to do. She could barely resist the desire to turn away from the door and continue on her way to the kitchen for a cold drink. The voice stopped her, though. A man's voice and he was obviously in pain. Why was a strange man in her sister-in-law's room? She sensed loneliness and a longing for someone that was so strong, it brought tears to her eyes. She knew these feelings. She felt this way every time Benjamin had to leave her to go on a business trip.

Benjamin...it had been so very long since she had last seen him. Wait. That couldn't be right. She had just left him a moment ago, sleeping soundly in their bed. She shook off her momentary confusion and decided to try and comfort the poor, lonely soul within the room. Never mind why he was there. She reached for the door and froze in horrified disbelief as her hand passed through the doorknob.

Suddenly, it was if she had been blindfolded and someone had ripped the cloth away from her eyes. She knew, she knew the truth now. She was dead, a disembodied spirit, and had been for centuries. Benjamin was long gone and probably lost to her forever. She was trapped in this house, doomed to walk these halls, alone, quite possibly for eternity. She threw back her head and screamed, giving voice to her anguish and sorrow, before collapsing to the floor, sobbing.

The door before her, and the one to the left of it, were flung open almost immediately, in response to her cry. She looked up at the two boys standing before her, both of them holding guns directed straight at her.

"Help me," she asked, begging them. "Please, oh, please, set me free." The boy with the long braid simply stood there, staring at her in shocked disbelief. The other one tucked his gun into the waistband of his shorts and met her gaze calmly. She saw compassion in his eyes and realized that he understood. Somehow, this boy before her knew exactly how she felt.

"Ninmu ryoukai," he said. "We will. We will set you free."

"Thank you," she whispered and very deliberately caused her body to fade from view.

Heero stared at the spot where she had been until a dull thud attracted his attention. Duo had passed out cold. He sighed. "Baka. Now, I'll have to carry you back to bed. Tomorrow, we can decided where to start searching for the journal." 

Heero put Duo to bed and then returned to his own room. Katherine, still invisible, followed him and watched as he went back to sleep. Who was this boy that was so willing to help her? 

Reaching out to him, she tried to move a lock of his hair away from his face. Instead of moving his hair, her hand sank into his forehead. Shivering with distaste, she was withdrawing her hand, when she was suddenly assaulted with visions of blood, death, and destruction. Staring at Heero, she realized that she was seeing what the sleeping boy was dreaming.

She could see into his dreams? Now, that was interesting. She wondered what else she could do and set about trying to find out.

tbc..


	6. Part 6

Okay, to get this out of the way, no, I don't own them and I do tend to switch point of view throughout the story. I do own Katherine, and I hope she surprises you, at least a little. Oh, and this chapter is, again, short, but the next one is almost 3 times longer. It's lemon/lime flavored so, go figure. Next one, not this one. Sorry, you have to wait one more part. Okay, on to the story!

Helping Hands part 6 

The next morning, Duo woke up with a start. Blinking sleepily, he tried to get his tired mind in gear and working again. He almost fell out of bed as memories of the previous night came back to him.

"The ghost! We really saw the ghost! I don't remember anything after that, so I must have passed out. I can't believe I did that. And...Heero." Duo sighed. "Oi, Heero, what am I going to do about you? I may be in love with you, but I can't ever tell you that. You can barely tolerate me most of the time, even if you are supposed to be my best friend, so I'm pretty sure you'd never be able to feel for me the way that I feel about you. Take into account the fact that we're both guys and it's pretty hopeless. You're hurting inside, though, and that hurts me. I wish you could just tell me what you need, but I know that that will never happen. You go on and help the ghost, Heero. I'm gonna find a way to help you. I love you too much to just stand by and let you suffer."

Still talking to himself, the braided boy got together some clean clothes and headed into the bathroom for a shower. He never noticed the cold spot in the corner of the room where Katherine stood, listening.

Katherine had spent the rest of the night playing around in Heero's dreamscape. She had found that, if left alone, his dreams were full of death and destruction. It had been very difficult for her to turn his dreams into anything pleasant, until she had an idea. Insert Duo into the dreams. With Duo present, Heero had been quite willing to dream of something other than death and destruction.

Katherine had been very amused to find that anytime the dream had the potential to become somewhat erotic, Heero had shied away, resisting the idea. Not because he hadn't wanted something to happen, but because he was so certain that Duo would reject him that he wouldn't even allow it to happen in his dreams.

The ghost stood in Duo's room for a while, thinking. Concentrating on the two pilots allowed her to temporarily ignore her own loneliness and kept her focused on the present, instead of being locked into the past. In life, her personality had been very similar to Duo's, and the spirit decided that it was time for her to start acting like the person she had once been, instead of the tragic ghost she had become.

Heero was trying to help her, Duo was trying to help Heero, and she wanted to do something to help them both. It didn't bother her that they were both boys. They were in love and they had had so much pain and sadness in their lives that she was determined to help them acknowledge their love and, hopefully, find a little happiness. Hadn't somebody once said that you could never have too many helping hands? She smirked and began planning as Duo came out of the bathroom and headed downstairs to look for Heero.

He found him in the dining room, sitting at the table, with papers scattered everywhere. He was attempting to plot out a search pattern that would cover the entire house as quickly and thoroughly as possible. 

Heero looked up as Duo entered the room. "Quatre contacted me. He and Trowa will be joining us in two days. Wufei already has another mission and will be gone for at least a month." That said, Heero turned his attention back to the papers on the table. Duo shook his head silently and went into the kitchen to get some breakfast before joining Heero in his search. He knew Heero would expect him to help, and he had no objections. Searching the house would give him time to come up with a plan of his own to help Heero.

The day passed uneventfully, with the two boys searching different areas of the house, following the plan that Heero had drawn up. By evening, Duo had regained his customary good cheer. Heero had prepared them a simple meal and he ate silently while Duo chattered away about the house and several interesting items he had seen while searching for the journal.

After dinner, Duo did the dishes and Heero checked his laptop for messages. Not finding any, he rejoined Duo, and the two played cards for a time, discussing their planned search areas for the next day, and chatting idly. At least, Duo chatted. Heero mostly sat and listened, only occasionally making a comment in response to something Duo said.

Katherine stood in a corner of the room and watched the two interact. It was obvious that they were friends and partners, following an established, comfortable pattern in their relationship. It was equally obvious, at least to their unseen observer, that neither of them was happy with simple friendship, and that neither of them would do anything to change the way things stood between them. Both boys were very careful not to bring up anything even remotely personal as they talked.

Katherine frowned at Heero and continued to watch them as she considered different ways she might be able to get them to open up and really talk to each other. Heero's dream self had been much more open and animated with the dream version of Duo, so she hadn't realized just how difficult it might be to get Heero to talk to Duo about his feelings. Heero dropped most of his protective walls in his dreams, so it was too bad that Duo couldn't see that side of him. Or could he?

Still unseen, the ghost began to grin as Heero and Duo packed up the cards and went upstairs. They said good night and went into their respective bedrooms, with Katherine following Heero into his room. She thought of several possible scenarios as she waited patiently for Heero to fall asleep, finally settling on one particular scene that she had seen in Heero's own mind. She hoped that its familiarity would relax Heero even further. Enough so that he would either talk about his feelings or act on them. Katherine's grin turned decidedly wicked. After 300 years of celibacy, she was hoping to see some action!

Eventually, Heero fell asleep. "Oh, goody," the ghost whispered softy. "Showtime!"

tbc...


	7. Part 7

Okay, this is where the story starts earning it's rating. And yes, Katherine is a hentai. This is the M version, the NC-17, or X, version is on mediaminer. The long line of "xxx" is where I cut a chunk out of the fic to keep it at an M rating, but this version does still get into the sex a little bit. Actually, for this chapter, M is probably a bit high of a rating, but I'd rather be safe than sorry. Oh, and I don't own them, of course, and although I try to keep them in character, I'm not always successful. I also tend to change point of view a lot. Sorry about that. There are a few more notes at the end of the fic, but that's all I'm going to say for now. Enjoy!

Helping Hands part 7

Katherine reached out to Heero and gently touched her hand to his forehead. She established the dreamlink almost immediately and then slowly withdrew her hand. She sighed with relief when she found that she had no difficulty in maintaining the link, even without the physical contact. That had been the only possible problem she had foreseen with her plan. Turning away from Heero, she stepped through the wall and into Duo's room.

She silently approached the bed and saw that he was sound asleep as well. Katherine reached out, touched his forehead and drew him into the dreamlink with Heero. She frowned in concentration for a moment and then relaxed. There. The stage was set and both players were in place. All she had to do was maintain the link and sit back and watch. She smiled in anticipation.

Heero and Duo were dreaming. They were both aware of that, but there was a realistic quality to the dream that they both found slightly unnerving. Heero was sitting at a desk, laptop before him, in a school dorm room, wearing his usual spandex and tank top. Two twin beds were behind him, one of which, he somehow knew, belonged to Duo. A nightstand between the beds, two small dressers, and another desk and chair completed the furnishings in the small room.

Duo stood in the open doorway of the room, wearing nothing but a towel around his hips and another across his shoulders. His hair was unbound, falling around his back and shoulders and down to his knees. He entered the room and closed the door as Heero began typing on his laptop. Duo went to one of the dressers, got out a clean pair of boxers, and put them on, tossing the two towels into a corner of the room. He then tied his hair back into a loose ponytail and went over to see what Heero was working on.

"Oi, Heero, watcha doin'?" he asked, leaning on Heero's shoulder.

Heero stopped his typing and sat there for a moment, thoughts racing. The scene was so familiar to him. It had happened dozens of times before. Normally, he would respond, "Working. Now go away," and proceed to ignore his partner. He was tired, though. Tired of pushing Duo away and pretending that he felt nothing but friendship for the long-haired boy. This was a dream, what could it hurt to give into his impulses and respond to Duo the way he really wanted to? And, after Duo's comments the other day, and all of the dreams about Duo he had had the previous night, his resistance to his partner was very low.

He turned his head to look at Duo and found him looking right back, their faces only inches apart. Heero thought about what Duo had said their first day in the house, and asked softly, "Why are you always leaning on me like this?"

Duo's eyes widened in surprise, but he didn't move away. "Do you really want to know, Heero?" he asked in response. "The truth, I mean. Are you sure you really want me to answer that question honestly?"

Duo couldn't believe Heero had actually asked him that. He had never thought he would hear that question, not even in his dreams. He was even more surprised when Heero simply said, "Yes."

Duo looked down, where his arms still rested on Heero's shoulder, and then back up, gazing into those beautiful blue eyes that met his own steadily, waiting for an answer. He hesitated for a moment longer before saying, "I like touching you, Heero. I know that you would never allow me to touch you the way that I really want to, so I've learned to take what I can get."

"What way is that?"

Duo abruptly straightened and took a step away from Heero, staring at him in disbelief. This wasn't his Heero. He didn't know this person.

Heero turned in his chair to face Duo and sat there, watching him and waiting patiently for him to answer. Duo stood and studied him for a minute, trying to figure out what was so different about this Heero. After thinking for a bit, the answer came to him. This was the real Heero sitting before him, the person who hid behind the mask of the Perfect Soldier. The one he only caught rare glimpses of when Heero let his mask slip. Duo didn't know how his subconscious had managed to produce this unfamiliar version of Heero, and he didn't really care. This might be a dream, but it felt real and he was going to take advantage of it while he had the chance.

He stepped close to Heero again and reached out with one hand to gently trace the contours of Heero's face. "How do I want to touch you, Heero? Like this..." he said quietly, and then leaned down and softly kissed Heero on the lips.

Heero didn't respond and Duo pulled away again after a few seconds, disappointed. Duo watched him, waiting for a reaction. Heero looked at him, considering, and then stood. "Kiss me again, Duo. Please? Show me what you want."

Duo wasn't sure he had heard him correctly. "What did you say?"

"I want you to kiss me, touch me, show me what you want from me." Duo reached out and slowly pulled Heero into his arms, expecting him to protest or push Duo away. Heero simply stood quietly, waiting for his next move.

Duo kissed him again, nibbling on his lips and tracing them with his tongue. He tightened his hold, one arm around Heero's waist, pulling their bodies closer together, the other arm wrapping around Heero's shoulders as he buried his hand in Heero's thick hair.

Heero's arms slipped up to return Duo's embrace and he began running his hands up and down the bare skin of Duo's back, slowly stroking him. Duo moaned softly and deepened the kiss, sliding his tongue between Heero's lips and into his mouth, exploring, tasting, and encouraging Heero to do the same to him. Heero hesitantly complied, responding to Duo's growing passion.

After a few minutes, Duo pulled back slightly, breaking off the kiss to look deeply into Heero's eyes. Both boys were aroused and their breathing had quickened. They were so caught up in what was happening that they had forgotten that this was just a dream. It felt too real.

"Heero, I meant it when I said that I want to touch you. Will you let me?"

Heero hesitated as he thought about it. He wasn't sure exactly what Duo wanted to do to him, but he had enjoyed the kiss, and the embrace, and he trusted Duo. "Yes. What do you want me to do?"

Duo's breath caught and he swallowed, hard. He hadn't really thought that Heero would agree. "I want you to take off your clothes and lie down on your bed, on your back. Then just try to relax. I'll handle everything from there."

Heero quickly did as Duo had requested, feeling a little self-conscious as Duo joined him on the bed, still wearing his boxers. "Aren't you going to get rid of those?" he asked, indicating the boxers.

Duo shook his head, "Nope. I'm concentrating on you, not me."

He reached out and caressed Heero's lips with his thumb, then slid his hand along the line of his jaw, to his ear. His fingers traced the outline of the ear, causing Heero to shiver, before trailing down his neck to his shoulder. His caresses became firmer, and more confident, as he began exploring the expanse of Heero's chest and Heero made no move to stop him.

He brushed his thumb across a nipple, causing Heero to gasp aloud at the unfamiliar sensation. At the sound, Duo raised his gaze from Heero's chest to his face and their eyes met. Duo smiled, kissed Heero briefly on the lips, and then began nibbling, licking, and kissing his way down the same path his hand had followed. Heero moaned when Duo paused to nibble on his ear before moving on.

Heero's mind was spinning as Duo's hand continued to toy with one of his nipples and he tensed in anticipation as Duo's mouth drew closer and closer to the other one. Duo's mouth closed over the small, brown nub and Heero cried out as a jolt of pleasure coursed through his body. "Duo!"

Duo paused his sweet torture and looked up at Heero, smirking. "Like that, do you?"

"Duo," Heero whispered, "I feel...I want...kuso, Duo, I don't know what I want."

"It's okay, Heero. I have a pretty good idea. Let me take care of you." Heero reached out a hand and cupped Duo's cheek for a moment, then slid his hand back and buried it in Duo's thick, soft hair.

"Alright," he said, breaking the tie holding Duo's hair back, running his fingers through it and luxuriating in the feel of the silky mass. He wrapped the ends of it around his hand, holding it tightly in his fist. "I trust you, Duo."

Duo's eyes widened and his mouth dropped open in shock. Heero smirked slightly at Duo's startled expression. Duo shook off his surprise and narrowed his eyes as he took in Heero's smirk.

"Oh, really," he drawled. "Then you just lie there and let me show you exactly how trustworthy I am." With that, he turned his attention back to Heero's chest, picking up where he had left off.

Heero gasped and moaned, throwing back his head and arching his back as Duo nibbled and sucked on first one nipple and then the other before slowly working his way further down Heero's body.

He paused to dip his tongue into Heero's belly button before drifting over to bite at his right hip. Ignoring Heero's throbbing erection, Duo continued to explore Heero's body with his hands and mouth.

Heero couldn't think, he could only feel as he focused on the sensations of Duo's hands and mouth moving over his skin. He tightened his grip on Duo's hair as Duo grasped his right ankle and lifted his leg slightly to nibble and suck on Heero's toes before switching his attention to the other foot. After giving the left foot the same treatment the right one had received, Duo began working his way back up. When he reached the top of Heero's thigh, Duo paused.

"Heero," he said softly. Heero looked down at him, eyes glazed with passion, breathing harshly as he tried to concentrate on Duo's words. "Heero, I want you to watch me. I want you to see what I'm doing, as well as feeling it. Can you do that?"

Heero nodded. He didn't think he could speak, even if his life depended on it. He was willing to do whatever Duo wished at this point.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Heero's eyes snapped open as he jerked awake, body shaking from the intensity of his climax. "A dream," he said, looking down at himself. "Just a dream. But, Kami, it felt so real. Duo..." He sighed, got up, and went into the bathroom to clean himself up before trying to go back to sleep.

In the next room, Duo was staring up at the ceiling, having been awakened when the dreamlink was severed. "God, what a fantastic dream. I've always wanted to do that to Heero. So real...I can still taste him." Duo grinned. "Damn, he tastes good! That was almost as good as the real thing. Although, with the real thing, we probably wouldn't have stopped there."

He was uncomfortably hard after the dream and considered going into the bathroom to take care of it, but decided not to. He wanted to stay where he was and think about the dream he had just had. Still grinning, he rolled over and eventually went back to sleep. Katherine just stood by Duo's bed and snickered.

tbc.

Okay, for those of you who are wondering, I got the idea for the oh-so-realistic dream because it actually happened to me. Years ago, I had a very realistic dream where I had a long conversation with a classmate of mine. The dream was incredibly realistic, and I had to keep reminding myself that it was a dream, even though I could feel the heat of the sun and smell the exhaust from the cars that drove by where we were standing. The next day, he and I both acted as though the conversation had actually taken place. We never discussed it, but our attitudes towards one another completely changed, to the point our friends questioned us as to what had happened. Neither one of us answered their questions, but I always felt as though he had actually been in the dream and remembered our talk. I figured if it could happen in reality, it could certainly happen in a fic. Okay, the next update will be next weekend. Read and review please!!


	8. Part 8

Okay, here's the next part. I don't own them and Heero may be a little OOC. Enjoy and please review!

Helping Hands part 8

The next morning, Heero got out of bed, went into the bathroom for his usual morning routine, and then went downstairs to the kitchen to get himself some breakfast. He had gotten up at the same time he always did when he didn't have a mission, even though he had tossed and turned most of the night. He couldn't stop thinking about the dream.

He knew about the mechanics of sex, of course, but he had no first hand experience, so he had nothing to compare the dream to. Questions kept running through his mind as he ate, cleaned the dishes, and made his way up the stairs and into one of the empty bedrooms to begin searching for the journal again.

He moved around the room, testing the solidity of the floor and walls, before turning his attention to the furnishings. As he worked, he began to voice his thoughts aloud, as was his habit when he was alone and unlikely to be disturbed.

"I can't believe how good everything felt. How good Duo felt. Does it always feel that good? Does the real thing feel the same, better, or maybe, not as good? That was just a blowjob, what does it feel like to actually have sex? To be inside someone...or have him inside you?

Hn. Who am I trying to fool. Not "someone". Duo. He wanted to touch me, taste me. That was far more than just a blowjob and he really seemed to enjoy it, enjoy being with me that way. I wonder what he tastes like...if I could make him feel the way I felt when he took me into his mouth. I wonder if I'll ever get the chance to find out.

The look on his face the other day, when he was teasing me. I think...I think it might have been desire. His expression in the dream was similar when he told me that he wanted to touch me. Does that mean he wants me? Really wants me, the same way that I want him? But...I want more than his body, I want his heart and mind, too. I love him, all of him.

I love the way he can have a serious philosophical debate while playing chess with an old man in the park and then, an hour later, be chasing pigeons with a bunch of six year olds and causing more trouble than all of the kids put together. He takes great joy in life, can find humor in any situation, no matter how grim, and, Kami only knows how, he shows others how to enjoy life, too, whether they want to or not. He's like a campfire on a cold, dark night. Everyone gathers around him to bask in his warmth and light. And yet, he calls himself Shinigami, the God of Death, and lives up to the name when he is on a mission.

Hn. Listen to me. He's the only one who could ever get me babbling like this. I do love him, but could he ever love me? I never expected to fall in love, with anyone, and I doubt anyone would believe it has happened. That's part of the problem, actually. But, being around Duo so much, being partners the way that we are, how could I not fall in love with him? I never really thought it could be possible for anything to come of my feelings for him, but, after that dream last night, I just don't know. It was my dream, but somehow, I think he should know about it, know what happened between us. There's no way he could know, but something tells me he does.

I don't understand this, especially since I...I don't feel so empty today. It's like Duo gave me a part of himself while I was dreaming. Not much, but enough to fill up some of the void. If a dream of him can do so much, then I was right about him being the one I need. He can teach me how to feel, how to live. He can set me free, show me how to become someone other than the cold, impassive Perfect Soldier that is all anyone ever sees. But will he? He has so much power over me and he doesn't even know it. He can't help me if he doesn't know, but I can't just tell him. Maybe I could...no. No, I won't do anything. After all, I don't really know that he feels anything for me. I could just be imagining things because I want so badly for it to be true. The dream was just that, a dream, so there is no way that Duo could possibly know about it, but..."

Heero finally fell silent, although it was obvious that his mind was still going around in circles. He completed his search of the room and departed for the next room on his list, still deep in thought, leaving behind a very pleased ghost. Katherine had already been in the room when he had entered and begun his search, so she had heard his entire monologue. She had learned a great deal about all five pilots through Heero's dreams, so his reaction to what had happened came as no surprise to her and fit in perfectly with her plan. Heero's personality was very analytical, and Duo was as sensual as Heero was analytical.

Katherine fully expected Heero to be the one to eventually figure out that Duo had shared the dream with him and that she was responsible. She also knew that Duo wouldn't care about how or why, he would be too busy concentrating on his and Heero's actions in the dream and the implications of those actions. The two boys complimented each other perfectly, much like it had been between her and Benjamin. She missed him so very much, but she had hope now, thanks to Heero and Duo, that she would be reunited with him someday.

Katherine smirked suddenly. Thinking of being united with Benjamin reminded her that Heero planned to search her bedroom sometime today. She could hardly wait to see Heero's reaction when he found a certain item that was hidden in that room.

tbc...


	9. Part 9

Okay, this part has a flashback in which the other pilots make a cameo and pretty much has absolutely nothing to do with the plot. This whole story is, as I have mentioned, based on a dream, and there were certain images I just could not get out of my head, so I included a few of them in this part. I hope you enjoy this part, but, even if you don't, I had fun with it. 

Don't own them, pay attention to the rating I gave this fic, and I tend to shift point of view a lot. Enjoy!

Helping Hands part 9

Duo slowly drifted into wakefulness a couple of hours after Heero got up. He didn't really want to get out of bed, in spite of having slept better than he had in a long time. He just wanted to lie there and replay the dream in his mind over and over again. Naturally, in a very short amount of time, he was extremely aroused.

He tossed back the blankets covering his body, raised a hand to his chest, and began caressing himself, tweaking his nipples before sliding his hand slowly down his body. He slipped his hand into his boxers and began stroking his erection, moaning Heero's name as his hand moved faster and faster. Just before climaxing though, he stopped and lay there for a minute, breathing heavily.

"Gotta take a shower anyway," he muttered. "Might as well finish this up in there. Less of a mess to clean up that way." He heaved himself up off of the bed, grabbed a clean pair of boxers, and vanished into the bathroom.

Some time later, he reentered the bedroom, flopped back down on the bed and stared up at the ceiling, thinking. "Damn. I can't get that dream out of my head. I haven't been this horny since that night at the club."

FLASHBACK

"Oi, Heero! Wufei! Hurry up!" Duo was standing by the door of their current safehouse, shifting his weight from one foot to the other, practically dancing in his excitement. "I wanna make sure we get a table right by the dance floor!" Quatre and Trowa were waiting with Duo as Heero and Wufei finally joined them.

At Duo's insistence, all five boys were wearing black leather pants and boots that came up to mid-calf. Four of them were wearing loose, long-sleeved silk shirts that buttoned down the front, with several of the buttons undone to show a fair expanse of the flesh underneath.

Wufei's shirt was pristine white, Quatre's was a soft grey, Trowa was in hunter green, and Heero was wearing a shirt that was a deep, dark red color, the same shade as blood. Duo, who had provided the outfits for the others, had chosen for himself a black mesh t-shirt that showed off his lean, muscular physique, instead of the silk that his companions wore.

"Maxwell, you have been hounding us for months, trying to get us to go out to a club with you. Just because we've finally given in to your persistent demands, does not mean that we are eager to get there. Especially not wearing these ridiculous clothes." Wufei scowled at him, indicating his attire.

"Oh, come on, Wu-man. You all look great! Besides, I promised not to pull any pranks on you guys if you all came along. Well, not for a couple of weeks, anyway." Duo grinned as Heero joined Wufei in glowering at the braided boy. Trowa's lips quirked in a tiny smile as Quatre laughed outright. The two Asian pilots were not exactly happy about the plans for the evening, but not even they could hold out against a determined Duo. And Duo was definitely determined to get them all out of the safehouse for a while.

The five boys went outside, piled into the car that had been acquired earlier in the day, and took off for the club that Duo had selected, with Trowa driving. The club was a popular one, allowing entry to people age 16 and up, with those legally able to drink getting their hand stamped at the entrance. Without the stamp, you couldn't purchase anything alcoholic, which suited four of the pilots just fine. Duo, however, had plans that did not include his friends staying sober. He didn't want them falling down drunk, but he figured that, with a moderate amount of alcohol, they would be able to relax, loosen up a little, forget about being Gundam pilots, and just have a good time.

When they arrived at the club, Duo was the first one at the door, teasing and flirting with the girl who was taking money and stamping hands. He leaned against the girl's counter and waited while the others paid the cover charge, hoping for some type of momentary distraction. As he had half expected, it came in the form of Wufei, the last of the group to enter the club.

Wufei looked around as he walked in, making the mistake of including the girl working behind the counter in his look of obvious disdain. She promptly took offense and an argument ensued. While Wufei and the girl traded insults, Duo casually reached out, grabbed the stamp, applied it to his hand, and replaced it without anyone noticing, before stepping forward and diffusing the argument.

He silenced Wufei with the simple reminder that if Wufei got them kicked out, Duo would not be bound to honor his promise of good behavior. He then turned to the girl and mollified her with profuse apologies for the rudeness of his companion. She hesitated, but was no match for Duo's charm and allowed them to continue on into the club.

Once inside, they found a table near the dance floor, and, against their better judgment, allowed Duo to order the drinks, since he was more familiar with the various types of non-alcoholic beverages available. He disappeared in the direction of the bar and returned a few minutes later with a tray of drinks.

"Okay, for Quatre we have a pina colada. It's coconut, you'll love it. Trowa, for you, a Long Island ice tea. Heero, Wufei, I got you both Lynchberg lemonades. And, for myself, a Midori sour. Come on, guys, drink up. This place has a two drink minimum, you know." Quatre and Trowa both took sips of their drinks while Heero and Wufei stared at their glasses suspiciously.

"This is pretty good, Duo," said Quatre, taking another drink.

Trowa's eyes widened and then narrowed as he tasted his drink. "Duo," he began.

"Yeah, Trowa, I know. Best ice tea you've ever had, right? Good drink to kick back and relax with." Duo nodded almost imperceptibly at the other three pilots.

Trowa's gazed flashed from Duo to the others and back again and he smirked slightly. "Yeah, Duo. Thanks. Good choice."

Duo relaxed a little and turned his attention back to the two who had yet to drink. "Come on, guys, what's the matter? I told you, it's lemonade, and you know I never lie."

Still looking suspicious, the two boys tasted their drinks. "Not too bad, Maxwell. I suppose it will do," was Wufei's reaction.

Heero just said, "Hn," and drank some more.

Duo waited until everyone had finished their first drink and started on their second, before trying to get them all to dance. Heero and Wufei both refused, saying that they didn't want to, but Quatre and Trowa allowed themselves to be dragged off to the now crowded dance floor.

The two left behind simply sat and watched the dancers and sipped their drinks. Duo left the floor long enough to get them each another refill, and badger them some more about dancing, before rejoining Trowa and Quatre, who were obviously enjoying themselves. Wufei was half-way through his third drink, when two giggling girls showed up at the table and kidnapped him, hauling him out on the dance floor and refusing to let him go until he started dancing with them.

Heero, left alone at the table, shook his head and continued to watch. Slightly intoxicated, he almost fell out of his chair when Duo appeared beside him. "Come on, Heero. Please? Come dance with me."

"Duo, I told you, I don't want to dance. I'm familiar with ballroom dancing, not that, whatever that is," he said, indicating the people gyrating nearby. Duo grinned.

"Well, if that's the only problem, it's easy. All you have to do is move your body to the beat. Just watch the way some of the people on the floor move and copy them. Now, let's go. I'm not taking no for an answer this time." He took Heero's arm and dragged him out of his chair, heading for Trowa and Quatre, who were still dancing.

"No."

"Heero..."

"Not out there. If you're going to insist that I dance, then you had better find some place that's not so crowded."

Duo looked around for a minute and then nodded at a raised platform that was temporarily empty. "How about there?" Heero directed his gaze at the area Duo indicated, blinked a couple of times, and shrugged. Figuring that that was the closest he was going to get to agreement, Duo resumed dragging the reluctant, but unresisting Heero, not stopping until they were on top of the platform.

Duo began dancing, body moving with a boneless grace that was innately sensual. Heero stood motionless, looking around for a moment, until he focused on a couple on another platform nearby. He began to dance, every bit as graceful as his partner, in spite of the alcohol he had consumed, following Duo's advice and mimicking the movements of the people on the other platform.

Duo watched as Heero relaxed and lost himself in the music, knowing that Heero would never let his guard down so much normally and that, as a result, Duo was probably going to die, first thing in the morning. Spying Wufei out on the dance floor, sandwiched between two girls, Duo changed the probably to definitely. He was so busy thinking up ways to escape his friends' anger, that he didn't really notice when the music changed.

It got his immediate attention though, when Heero suddenly reached out, wrapped an arm around his waist and pulled him close. Very close. Then, still moving to the beat of the music, he began grinding his pelvis against Duo's. Duo's body kept moving but his mind shut down in shock. He craned his head slightly and, sure enough, the couple that Heero had been watching had started dirty dancing and Heero had simply continued to mimic them.

Duo stopped trying to think and allowed himself to just feel as he danced with Heero. He could think tomorrow. Tomorrow, when Heero was bound to come up with all sorts of ways to get even with him for being coerced into dirty dancing with Duo on a platform in full view of a room full of people, including their fellow pilots. Oh, yes, Duo was definitely a walking dead man.

END FLASHBACK

"God, after that dance, I wanted him so badly. It was all I could do to keep from jumping him right then and there. He was horny, too, but that was just the liquor and a warm body rubbing up against him. He passed out as soon as we got back to the safehouse and the next morning, he swore that he didn't remember anything after the second drink. He also swore that if I ever slipped him any alcohol again, he would reconfigure Deathscythe Hell so that instead of bat wings, he'd have a pink tutu. Wufei suggested giant fuzzy pink bunny slippers to go with the tutu. I wonder about those two sometimes.

Anyway, Heero wasn't drunk in the dream last night. It was so realistic, too. I keep thinking that it actually happened and that he's going to pretend that he doesn't remember anything again. I know he doesn't know about the dream, but I wonder... After that night at the club, I caught him looking at me kinda funny a couple of times. Maybe he does remember dancing with me and he just doesn't want to admit it. Maybe that dream was a hint from my subconscious, telling me that he really does want me, but doesn't know what to do about it. If that's the case, then it's up to me. Hmmm...first things first. I need to find out whether or not he actually does want me, then I can decide where to go from there." He leapt off of the bed, face alight with mischief, and practically bounced out the door, still wearing nothing but a pair of boxers.

He passed right by Katherine, who stood there, trying to regain control of her laughter, before following the braided boy out of the room. "Poor Heero," she said softly. "Between me and Duo, he doesn't stand a chance."

tbc...

For any one who's wondering, yes, I know the outfits make them sound like a boy-band. That's one of the images I was having trouble getting to go away. Heero and Duo dirty dancing was another one. Deathscythe in a pink tutu and bunny slippers was at the direct request of my beta. As much as she's done for me, I didn't dare refuse. If any one is wondering why I have Trowa as the only one noticing the alcoholic content of the drinks, it's because I don't think Quatre and Wufei would have been exposed to such mixed drinks, considering their social standings. Wine, yes, but it can be very difficult to notice the effects of an unfamiliar alcoholic drink, especially if you don't drink often. Heero was deprived, period, so he probably never even had a glass of wine, much less anything else. This is, of course, my opinion, so feel free to disagree.

Read and review please! See you next time.


	10. Part 10

I don't own them, earns it's rating for language in this part, and Katherine's a hentai. Enjoy! Read and review please!

Helping Hands part 10

Duo walked out of his room, intending to go to the master bedroom, since that's where Heero was planning to search next, when he heard the sounds of someone typing coming from Heero's bedroom. He looked in from the open doorway and was delighted to see Heero, sitting with his back to the door, typing away at his laptop. Dream or no dream, he should still get a reaction from Heero, thanks to Duo's teasing a couple of days earlier.

Heero wasn't paying much attention to his surroundings. He was busy forcing himself to concentrate on the messages he was responding to, instead of thinking about Duo, so he was quite surprised when a warm body suddenly leaned against him and a voice spoke in his ear. "Hi, Heero. Watcha doing?"

"Duo?" Heero abruptly realized that Duo wasn't wearing a shirt and his naked chest was pressed against the skin of Heero's back, shoulder and arm, left bare by the tank top he wore. Heero didn't think, he just reacted for once, turning his head to stare longingly at Duo's mouth, only inches away. His eyes darkened with desire and he moved slightly, pushing back against Duo and reveling in the skin-to-skin contact.

Duo's own eyes widened at the expression of desire on Heero's face and the feel of his body shifting closer. "Heero?"

Heero froze, the surprise in Duo's voice snapping him back to awareness of his own actions. He jumped to his feet, shoving Duo away, hard enough to make him fall, and stood with his back to Duo, hands clenched into fists at his sides.

"Damn it! Heero, what the hell are you doing?!"

Heero's hands relaxed after a moment and he turned around. Duo, sprawled on the floor where he had landed, found himself staring into the cold, impassive eyes of the Perfect Soldier.

"Baka. You shouldn't sneak up on me. Get up and get dressed. We have work to do." Heero stalked out of the room, completely dismissing Duo, who was still sitting on the floor, now grinning like the idiot that Heero had named him. If Heero had seriously wanted to hide his attraction to Duo, then he should have taken into account the fact that spandex didn't hide a damn thing. Duo picked himself up off of the floor and went to get dressed, before getting himself some breakfast and then heading up to the attic to search and to plan his next move.

Heero went to the master bedroom, closed the door, and promptly lost all traces of his impassive facade. "Oh, Kami, he knows. Heero no baka! How could I have been so stupid? I have better control over myself than that!" At that point, Katherine decided she had heard enough.

"Maybe that control has been part of your problem. Your reaction to Duo wasn't stupid, but the way you're acting right now sure as hell is." The ghost materialized as she spoke and found herself staring down the barrel of a gun again. She gave an amused snort. "I'm already dead, so that's pretty useless."

Heero glared at her and put the gun away. "What are you doing here?"

Katherine's amusement increased. "Well, hell, this is a haunted house and I'm the ghost that's been haunting it for the past 300 years. What do you think I'm doing here?"

Heero's glare intensified. "I meant what are you doing here now. I thought you only appeared at night, to relive your death or call for your husband."

"Your presence freed me from that. For now, at least, I can wander around the house as I please, watching everything that goes on." She grinned suggestively and batted her eyelashes at him.

Heero's glare changed to an expression of disbelief. "You're flirting with me?!"

"Why not? You're young, handsome, have a pulse. What more could a ghost want?"

Heero resumed glaring. "I already have one smart-mouthed baka to deal with, I don't need another one."

Heero and Katherine were so focused on one another that neither of them heard the odd, muffled noises outside the room. Duo was leaning against the door, trying desperately to suppress his laughter as he eavesdropped on the conversation. His room was by the master bedroom and he had stopped to listen at the door when he heard the sound of a woman's voice coming from the room.

"If baka means idiot, then that's the pot calling the kettle, darlin'."

Heero gave her a blank look. "I mean that you're the idiot, not him. Or me, for that matter. He's not the one walking around with a raging hard-on and trying to pretend that he didn't just all but beg his partner to fuck him senseless. And from what I've seen, being temporarily senseless would do you a world of good. So would losing that control you cling to. Yeah, a good fuck is just what you need. And, Duo..."

"ENOUGH!" Heero interrupted her, shaking with anger and embarrassment.

Katherine looked at him and shook her head. "Still in denial, hm? You really do need to talk with Duo about this, instead of me."

Heero, realizing that getting angry with a ghost wouldn't accomplish anything, made an effort to calm himself down. "I have nothing to discuss with him. My body's reaction to his nearness is perfectly normal for someone of my age and inclinations. Inconvenient, but normal. The most I could get from him is a release of sexual tension, and I can get that on my own, without his help."

Katherine sighed. "It's not the same. Heero, I know that you're in love with Duo, and Duo may not know how you feel about him, but he does know that you want him."

"I am not in love with Duo Maxwell!"

"Well, at least you're not denying that you want him. That's progress, I suppose. Are you going to do anything about it?" Heero glared at her again.

"I didn't think so. Heero, you may not do anything about your attraction to Duo, but I bet that he will. You need to decide what you're going to do when he makes a move, and you need to decide soon, since he doesn't exactly strike me as the patient type. Think about it, and while you're thinking, you might want to consider admitting your feelings for him."

He opened his mouth to respond, but before he could say anything, Katherine faded away, leaving him alone in the room. He shook his head and spoke so softly that she might not have heard him, even if she had still been in the room. "Katherine, I can't even admit how I feel to you and you seem to know already. How can I tell him?" He sighed and began his search of the room.

Outside the door, hearing nothing but silence now, a very thoughtful Duo continued on his way.

tbc...


	11. Part 11

Okay, you know the drill. I don't own them, I shift point of view a lot, Katherine, the ghost, is a hentai. Oh, and there are some sexual references in this one, but nothing bit. The actual sex is in the next part. Read and review, please!

Helping Hands part 11

Duo was hot, and covered in a film of dust that left muddy streaks on his skin, due to the sweat dripping off of him. He was also turning the air blue with his curses and had been for almost an hour. Searching a hot, stuffy attic full of spiders and dust was not what he considered fun. It didn't help that he was confused as to what to do about his partner, who he just happened to be in love with, and had just found out that said partner wanted him and might even return his feelings.

Still swearing, he opened various boxes and crates, rifling through the contents, and moving on when he had determined that the object of his search wasn't there. He stopped abruptly when he caught sight of a painting leaning with its back against the wall. He slowly walked over, picked it up, and blew on it to remove some of the dust coating it.

He peered at it, trying to figure out what had attracted his attention to the couple smiling at him from within the painting. It wasn't a very large painting, only approximately two feet by three feet, but it had an ornate frame that made it fairly heavy. He had never seen the man before, but the woman looked familiar. The thought had barely registered when he heard a soft voice, heavy with sorrow.

"I miss him so much."

"Katherine?"

"Who else?" she asked, appearing beside him.

"This is you and your husband, isn't it."

"Yes." She stretched out a hand to the painted, smiling face of her husband, but withdrew it before the hand touched the canvas. "Duo," she said, raising her eyes to meet his, "Be patient. Give Heero some time. He's confused, feeling things that he never felt before and it frightens him."

Duo shook his head. "I'm not sure I can give him time. Two of our friends are arriving tomorrow. Since we got here, something about this place, about you, has caused him to open up a little, to let me see glimpses of the real person hidden behind his usual coldness. I'm afraid that with Quatre and Trowa here, he'll go back to being cold and impassive and I'll never find out whether or not he really cares for me. Now that I know that he wants me physically, I could do something about that, at least, but sex alone is not going to satisfy me for very long, if at all."

"I know how you feel, Duo. My husband was much like Heero when we first met. When I fell in love with him, I decided that I would have all of him or nothing. If I had been content with just sex, then I might never have gotten him to admit how he really felt about me, and we wouldn't have been anywhere near as happy as we were together. Hmmm...when are your friends arriving?"

"According to the message Heero was typing this morning, they'll be here late tomorrow afternoon. Why?"

"Why don't you give him until tomorrow morning before you do anything? That will give him some time to think things over, and you'll still have most of the day to get him to talk." Her melancholy mood gone, she grinned at him. "Of course, you do know that pleasure can be a form of torture, right?" Duo burst out laughing and the ghost vanished, deciding it was time to go check up on Heero. Duo put the painting back where he had found it and resumed going through boxes, smiling this time, instead of swearing.

Katherine went to the master bedroom and, finding it empty, she then checked Heero's room. He was there, sitting on the bed, back against the headboard, legs stretched out before him, reading a book. A very old, but well-preserved book. Katherine smirked and moved to where she could see what he was reading, keeping her presence unknown.

Heero had found a journal. Not the one he was looking for, he knew that now, but still, a journal. There was nothing in it to identify the person who had written in it, but the date of the first entry was a couple of years before Katherine's death, so he started reading it. The owner of the journal had only written about the high or low points of her life, so the journal would skip several days at a time, and it wasn't until the writer named the blind date that she was devising various means of torture for, that Heero realized whose journal he was reading. It was Katherine's and the blind date had been Benjamin.

Heero continued reading, snickering occasionally, as Katherine's journal told the story of her romance with Benjamin. Katherine was blunt, outspoken, and could be a little crude if she thought the occasion warranted it. Her ghost was much the same and Heero began to worry a little as he found out the lengths to which Katherine would go to make something happen. Once she found out that Benjamin might love her, she had wanted him to confess his feelings for her and his ring on her finger and the man hadn't stood a chance.

Heero was quite able to see the similarities between himself and Benjamin and between Duo and Katherine, and he wondered what Katherine would do to get him together with Duo. She had made it obvious that she knew that Heero was in love with Duo and that she thought he should do something about it. Heero believed in acting on his emotions, but he was afraid of being rejected and losing Duo's friendship, and it was the fear that he had chosen to act on. As he read Katherine's journal, he began to think that maybe he had made the wrong decision.

When he got to the entry dated the day after their wedding, he almost dropped the book. Katherine had described the events of her wedding night in exacting detail. She had not slept with Benjamin before then, and nothing else Heero had read in the journal had prepared him for such graphic descriptions. She had recorded thoughts, emotions, and sensations, as well as clinical descriptions of everything they had done that night.

Heero, a little embarrassed about reading such intimate details, flipped forward a few pages, only to find another description of a sexual encounter between Katherine and Benjamin. He saw something about handcuffs, a blindfold, and a riding crop and hastily turned a few more pages. He found an entry about chocolate syrup, whipped cream, and cherries, and, knowing how much Duo liked chocolate sundaes, he couldn't resist reading it.

By the time he finished reading that particular entry, he was extremely aroused, as he kept imagining himself and Duo doing the things that Katherine had described. He lay down on the bed, set the journal aside, and was moving a hand toward his erection when Katherine spoke. "Sure you don't want to get Duo for that?"

Heero was so startled that he fell off of the bed. "KATHERINE! Where are you?!" He rose to his feet, looking quite ready to kill someone, preferably, the ghost.

"Now, Heero, I know that you've been reading all about me in bed, but I thought that Duo was the one you wanted." She laughed, refusing to materialize as he attempted to track her by the sound of her voice.

"Omae o korosu!"

"Oi, Heero, you can't kill her, she's already dead," Duo's amused voice came from the door as he opened it. "What did she do, anyway?"

"Oh, I just startled him when he was..."

"Katherine!" Heero protested.

"…reading my journal," she continued without pausing. "Why, Heero, that is what you were doing when I came into the room. What did you think I was going to say?" She finally appeared near Duo, her expression as teasing as her voice had been.

"I...you..." Heero took a deep breath and sighed. He looked at Duo and blinked in surprise as he realized the condition the braided boy was in. "What happened to you?"

Duo's shorts and t-shirt were grey with dust and cobwebs. His face and arms were covered with brown streaks and his hair was half out of its braid, a tangled mess so full of dirt and cobwebs that it's color was undeterminable. "I was looking around in the attic, remember? It's getting late and you've evidently been reading that journal all afternoon. I'm going to go take a shower before fixing dinner. I'll call you when it's ready." Duo walked back out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

Heero looked at Katherine. "I don't know whether to thank you or strangle you."

"Oh, go back to reading. Consider it an instruction manual." She grinned at him and disappeared again.

Heero decided to follow her suggestion and resumed reading, shifting uncomfortably every once in a while and trying not to think of Duo as he read the entries regarding her sex life. He read until Duo called him to eat, finished his food quickly, did the dishes and went back up to his room to read some more. Duo had decided to take the ghost's advice and did not mention Heero's reaction to him that morning, much to Heero's relief. After dinner, Duo went up to his own room to read a book that he had found in the library. Both boys went to bed early, and fell asleep fairly quickly. As soon as they were sleeping deeply, Katherine made her move.

tbc.


	12. Part 12

Author's Notes:

Well, I reworked this a little so that it doesn't have quite as much of the sex cut out of it. I guess this time it actually earns it's M rating. Again, the uncut version is on Mediaminer. The usual warnings apply. They are probably OOC. Since they never had sex in the actual series I don't see how we could honestly be expected to keep them in character anyway, but that's just my opinion. Enjoy! Read and review, please.

Helping Hands part 12

Both boys were dreaming again. Duo was standing in the doorway of a bedroom. Looking around, he recognized the place as a small mountain cabin that they had used several times as a safehouse. His hair was unbound and he was only wearing a pair of boxers. Heero stood before him, with his back to the door, looking down at the queen-size bed that dominated the small room. He was wearing his usual spandex shorts, but without the tank top this time.

Duo sighed softly with longing as he let his eyes roam over Heero's body. Heero started and whirled around to face him, his expression changing from surprise to desire as he took in Duo's appearance. He took a step towards Duo, then stopped and glanced back at the bed before facing him again. "Well?" he said.

Duo leaned against the doorway and smiled slightly at Heero. "Well what, Heero?"

"Aren't you going to...I mean, aren't we going to..." Heero glared at him. "Duo, get over here!"

Duo's small smile grew to one of genuine amusement and Heero's breath caught at his expression, one full of humor, tenderness, and affection. "Nope. I'm not going to make it so easy for you this time, Heero. If you want something from me, you're going to have to ask for it."

Heero forced himself to begin breathing again and thought for a moment. Duo had been the one who risked rejection in the first dream and Heero was risking much less, since he already knew that Duo wanted him. Telling Duo what he wanted would still be difficult for him though, because he wasn't used to people caring about how he felt and what he needed. He wasn't sure he even knew how to express his desires, but, for Duo, he was willing to try. "I...I want..to find out what you taste like," he said hesitantly.

"Anything else?", Duo asked, trying desperately not to let Heero see just how much that statement had affected him.

Heero thought back to something he had read in Katherine's journal. She considered sex, fucking, and making love three different things. Sex, according to her, was simply a physical act, with no emotions involved, and had no place in a relationship. If you were just having sex, then your relationship was over. Fucking was when both people became overwhelmed with desire and they came together with very little tenderness or foreplay. They saw each other, wanted each other, ripped their clothes off, and took what they wanted. Katherine and her husband usually celebrated his homecomings by fucking. Making love was just that, a physical way of expressing your love for another person. Both people gave and received pleasure. Touching, tasting, exploring, finding out what gave the other person the most pleasure, and putting that knowledge to use was making love. After reading Katherine's definitions, Heero had come to the conclusion that Duo had been making love to him in the first dream. He still didn't really know how Duo felt about him, but he did know that he loved Duo. He wanted to make love with Duo and, forgetting again that this was just a dream, he made a decision.

Heero took a deep breath and looked into Duo's eyes, losing himself in them and dropping every single mask and wall he possessed in the process. "Make love with me, Duo," he whispered.

Duo was spellbound as he stared into Heero's eyes and, for the first time, he saw into Heero's soul. So many emotions. How could he have ever thought that Heero was cold and impassive? Desire, need, loneliness, fear, longing, and something that Duo had never thought he would see. Could that really be love?

"You love me, don't you," he said, making it a statement instead of the question he so desperately wanted to ask.

Heero tensed, as though expecting a blow, and then forced himself to relax. He had been thinking that his fear might have been the wrong emotion to act on. Maybe it was time to admit to some of his other emotions and let them guide him. "Hai," he said, never looking away from Duo's eyes.

Duo was stunned . "Oh, God, pinch me, I'm dreaming! On second thought, don't pinch me. I am dreaming and I'd rather not wake up right now. Heero, I..I love you, too, but I never thought you'd admit it, not even in my dreams!" Duo continued talking, babbling actually, but Heero frowned and tuned him out for a moment. There was something off about what Duo had said, something not quite right.

Now that Duo had reminded him, Heero also remembered that this was just a dream. A very large part of him was overjoyed at the dream Duo's confession of love, since he had never expected to hear that either, but..."Wait a minute! Your dreams?"

"Well, yeah. What's your point?" Duo was not exactly happy that his dream Heero was suddenly ignoring him.

"This isn't your dream, it's mine. And since when is a figure in a dream aware that he's in a dream?"

"Huh? Heero, what are you talking about?"

Heero's thoughts were racing. He reviewed everything that had happened since they had arrived at the house and he could only think of one explanation. "Katherine! I know you're behind this dream! I want it stopped right now! Do you hear me? I want out!"

Heero woke up abruptly, to find Katherine standing near his bed. He jumped up and immediately started yelling at her.

Duo, in the next room, woke up extremely confused. He had been having this wonderful dream, and then, all of the sudden, the Heero in his dream had started yelling at Katherine. Actually, he was still yelling at her. Duo could only make out a few of words, but when he heard something about dreams and mind control, he leaped up and ran out of his room. He came to a halt outside Heero's door and paused a moment, before he reached out and slowly turned the doorknob.

Inside the room, Katherine was standing against the far wall, where she could see the door. Heero was pacing back and forth in front of her, still talking, but no longer yelling. She wasn't paying any attention to him, she was busy waiting for Duo to arrive.

When she saw the door inch open, she took that as her cue and interrupted Heero mid-sentence. "Heero, shut up a minute and listen to me. I didn't control your mind. I didn't force you or Duo to say or do anything against your will. I didn't do any of the things you have been accusing me of. I just manipulated your dreams a little so that they weren't nightmares and I linked your dreams with Duo's. I provided the background when your dreams were linked, but everything that happened was entirely your own actions."

Before Heero could respond, the bedroom door slammed open. Duo stood there, staring at Heero with a decidedly predatory expression. "Katherine, are you saying that both Heero and I were present in those two dreams? We both remember what happened?"

"Yes, and yes," she said, nodding and smirking.

"That's all I needed to know. I'll thank you later, now scram." She started laughing, waved at Heero, and vanished.

Heero looked like a deer caught in headlights as he realized that he was now alone with Duo, who hadn't looked away from him since he had opened the door. Duo reached back, shut and locked the door, and then began moving forward, stalking Heero.

"You let me taste you, pleasure you, and told me that you wanted to do the same to me." Duo paced around the room, maneuvering Heero, who moved so that he was continually facing Duo and backing up whenever Duo got close. They both stopped when Heero found himself backed up against the bed, with Duo only a couple of feet away. "You asked me to make love with you. You admitted that you love me and heard me say that I love you. Is that really how you feel, what you want?"

Heero was semi-cornered and Duo, seeing the panic mixed with desire in Heero's eyes, backed off slightly. Duo stared at Heero, willing him to see how much Duo loved and needed him and how much Duo hoped that he felt the same.

Heero hesitated, torn. He was afraid. He was afraid that Duo didn't really love him and afraid of the consequences if he told Duo how he felt. He wasn't dreaming this time and he couldn't pretend that he didn't remember what had happened if Duo didn't react the way he hoped he would. He hadn't really had a chance to process the fact that the dreams might as well have been reality, as far as their actions and reactions to one another were concerned. Ever since the Perfect Soldier had been created, Heero had used the Perfect Soldier to hide his true feelings, especially whenever he was afraid or uncertain. This time, however, he sensed that if let that happen, if he pushed Duo away again, then he might never have another chance to express his love. If he let his fear guide his actions this time, he might lose Duo for good.

Looking into Duo's eyes, he knew that he wanted to be with Duo, for tonight, for tomorrow, and possibly forever. He lost himself again in those deep, violet pools, and, somewhere within their depths, he found the strength to speak his heart. "Ai shiteru, Duo. I need you and, hai, I want to make love with you."

Duo's face grew radiant with joy and he quickly closed the distance between them. One arm wrapped itself around Heero's waist and pulled him close, while his hand reached up, shaking with the strength of his emotions, to caress Heero's face. "Ai shiteru, Heero," he whispered, as his hand moved back to bury itself in Heero's thick hair and their lips met in a tender kiss.

The kiss deepened and became more passionate. Duo explored Heero's mouth with his tongue, caressing and coaxing Heero to respond. Heero was a quick study, and soon, both boys were moaning in pleasure as their tongues dueled leisurely, neither truly attempting to dominate the other, and pausing occasionally to breathe. Heero's arms were wrapped around Duo's waist and he slid his hands down to Duo's hips, pulling him closer, and he began to move his own hips, grinding them together. Duo broke off the kiss with a muffled exclamation and they both stood there for a moment, looking at each other and panting.

"Heero, do you trust me?" Duo asked.

Heero frowned slightly. "I already answered that."

"Yeah, well, humor me and answer it again."

Heero's frown deepened. "Hai, I trust you. Why?"

Duo stepped away from him, breaking their embrace, and looked at him, considering. "You asked me to make love with you and I want to, desperately, but..."

"But what, Duo?" Heero asked impatiently.

"But I want to be the seme," Duo said quietly.

Heero blinked, startled. He hadn't exactly expected Duo's request, but he wasn't really surprised, considering what had happened in the first dream. Duo evidently had knowledge and experience that Heero simply didn't have. He wondered about that, but decided that now wasn't the time to ask. He thought about how much he had enjoyed what Duo had done in the dream and made his choice. "Alright, Duo. We'll do it your way, this time."

"Sugoi! Strip and lie down. I'll be right back." He disappeared into the bathroom before Heero could respond. Heero hesitated a moment and then shrugged. He took off the tank top and spandex he'd been sleeping in and sat down on the edge of the bed.

Duo reentered the room, carrying a couple of towels and some body lotion, and stopped short when he saw Heero sitting on the bed. He simply stood there and stared at Heero, looking him up and down, until Heero couldn't stand it any longer. Flushing slightly, feeling self-conscious, he said, "Stop that and get over here. And this time, those damn boxers are coming off before we do anything else."

Duo grinned and moved to set the towels and lotion on the nightstand by the bed. "Gomen, Heero, but you're just so beautiful, I couldn't help but admire you."

Heero glared at him, but the glare vanished almost immediately and it was his turn to stare in admiration as Duo removed his boxers. "So beautiful," he whispered softly and Duo turned red with embarrassment.

"Um, yeah, thanks, now lie down, Heero."

Heero shook his head. "I want you to do something for me first." Duo, slightly confused, gave him a questioning look. "Will you unbraid your hair for me? I want to see you with your hair loose, like it was in the dream."

It was Duo's turn to hesitate and think over his partner's request. Heero had let down so many walls since they had arrived at this house, letting Duo see the person behind the mask. Duo thought that, while he had taken a wall or two himself, Heero had far surpassed him in that regard. Maybe it was time to make the score a little more even. "Alright, Heero. Since you asked."

Heero laid down and watched, fascinated, as Duo grabbed his hair, removed the tie, and began unraveling the braid. "Wait, Duo. Let me do it?" Duo nodded and joined him on the bed, stretching out on his side next to Heero, who was on his back.

Heero took the braid in his hands and unraveled it slowly, combing his fingers through the silky strands and allowing the luxurious mass to pool on his chest and stomach. Heero continued running his hands through Duo's hair as Duo slowly closed his eyes and began purring in pleasure.

After a time, Duo opened his eyes, raised himself up on one elbow, and reached out a hand to cup Heero's face, running his thumb back and forth over Heero's cheek. "Ai shiteru, Heero," he whispered, "I love you," and leaned over to kiss him passionately.

Their tongues wrestled with one another for long moments, until they had to break for air. Duo gathered his hair and draped it over his shoulder, allowing the long strands to cover the bed beside them as he moved to cover Heero's body with his own.

After a quick kiss on Heero's lips, Duo began kissing his way down Heero's chest. Heero wrapped Duo's hair around his hand and moaned Duo's name as he paused to swipe his tongue across a nipple, his hand moving to pinch and rub the other one at the same time. With a tiny smile, Duo vowed to himself that, before dawn came, he would see just how loud Heero could get.

He continued kissing and licking his way down Heero's body, pausing again to dip his tongue in Heero's navel. He stopped just above Heero's throbbing erection and looked up, to see Heero panting, his eyes glazed with passion. Heero looked down at him, his hips jerking slightly when Duo wrapped his hand around the base of his arousal. Their eyes locked and Duo slowly lowered his head to take the tip into his mouth.

Heero gasped and arched his back, thrusting himself deeper into the moist heat. Duo had expected this and easily took in more of Heero's length. Heero began thrusting in and out of Duo's mouth and Duo permitted him to for a short time, before he draped an arm across Heero and rested enough of his weight on it to cause Heero to stop. Heero growled at him in frustration and Duo pulled his head away, chuckling in amusement at Heero's reaction.

"Hand me the lotion," he said, still chuckling.

"Iie," Heero said and Duo looked at him, surprised. Heero tugged on the hair wrapped around his hand, pulling Duo up his body. Duo was slightly confused as to what Heero wanted, but he moved willingly, until they were face to face again.

"What is it, koi?" he asked quietly, and Heero's eyes softened at the endearment.

"You...you keep concentrating on me. I want to try to make you feel the things you're making me feel and I want to find out what you taste like," Heero said, with a slightly petulant tone in his voice. Duo grinned and rolled onto his back, beside Heero.

"I'm all yours, koi."

Heero sat up slightly, and turned to look at Duo uncertainly, not sure what to do. Duo reached up a hand to gently caress his face. "Just do what ever you're comfortable with and I'll be happy. Don't push yourself into doing something you don't want to do." Duo grinned at him again. "The mission, in this case, is to make sure we both enjoy ourselves, not to see how much you can make me feel. Okay?"

Heero smiled back at him. "Ninmu ryoukai." He hesitated for a moment longer, thinking. He decided to start by pressing his lips briefly against Duo's, before kissing and nibbling his way down Duo's throat to his chest.

Remembering how good Duo's hand and mouth had felt on his own nipples, he spent long moments toying with Duo's. By the time he resumed trailing a path downward, Duo had buried his hands in Heero's thick hair. He arched his body into the soft caresses of Heero's tongue, moaning with pleasure, as Heero's hands and mouth moved over his skin.

Duo's moans became louder when Heero wrapped his hand around Duo's erection and began to pump it, slowly. He was about to take the head into his mouth, when he noticed a drop of moisture on the tip. He swiped his tongue across it, wringing a strangled cry from Duo, and paused to consider the salty/sweet flavor, although his hand never ceased its movement.

He decided that he liked the taste and wanted more, but..."Duo...does everybody taste different? I know that everybody has a unique scent, so it would follow..."

"HEERO!" Heero, blinked, startled, as Duo, panting, eyes slightly glazed with passion, was somehow managing to glare daggers at him. "Now is not the time to be asking questions like that! Save 'em for later!"

Heero nodded, wide-eyed, and turned his attention back to Duo's arousal.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Heero was lost in sensations, the only stable point in his world was Duo's eyes, still locked with his, as Duo continued to move inside him. The pleasure built until, finally, they both climaxed, screaming one another's names. Duo's movements slowed and then stopped. He let Heero's legs fall off of his shoulders, to either side of him, and he rested for a moment, the two of them still joined.

Heero finally looked away from Duo, to where his own seed had coated them. He reached out a hand and scooped some of it up, bringing it to his mouth to taste. "I do taste different from you. I never tried it before," he said, licking off his hand. He stuck a finger in his mouth and started sucking on it, and then stopped. His eyes widened and he looked at Duo in disbelief. Duo was grinning at him wryly.

"What do you expect, Heero? I've been lusting after you for a hell of a long time."

Heero shook his head and took his finger out of his mouth. "I didn't think you could recover that fast. I get the feeling that I'm really going to have trouble walking tomorrow." Duo burst out laughing and, after a minute, Heero joined him.

Katherine wished that she could laugh, too, but figured that they might be determined enough to find a way to get rid of her permanently if they knew she had been there the whole time. The laughter faded and was soon replaced with moans of pleasure as the two on the bed began moving again. Katherine left the room, happy that they had finally gotten together.

tbc...


	13. Part 13

Author's Notes:

Hi, guys, here's the next part. I keep forgetting to remind you guys that GW takes place nearly 200 years after the space colonies were established, and, last I checked, we don't currently have any space colonies and probably won't for a number of years. That said, Katherine is blunt and outspoken because she probably died around our time period, if not later. I've heard and participated in conversations with people who talk a lot like Katherine does to Heero, that's where she came from. That said, she's misbehaving in this part too, so be prepared. Heero and Duo are a little OOC, I'm sure, but I tried to keep them in character, for the most part. I don't own them and I shift POV a lot, which you should be used to by now. I think that's everything, so enjoy!

Helping Hands 13

Heero always woke up abruptly, fully awake and alert, and the next morning was no different. He noted the silence of the old house around him, the now faint scent of sex in the air, the soreness of his body, and the warmth and weight filling his arms before he even opened his eyes. He and Duo were lying on their sides, chest to back, with Heero behind Duo, arms around him, holding him close. Duo's hair had been draped out of the way, across the top of the pillow the two of them were sharing. Heero considered getting out of bed and carrying on with his usual routine, but decided against it. He didn't have any missions right now, and he was a little concerned about what would happen when Duo woke up, so he wanted to spend as much time as he could just holding him, savoring the way he felt in his arms. He thought about Katherine, briefly, deciding that she would want them to spend the day together, and would be very angry if they didn't take a break from searching for the journal. He squirmed around a bit, getting more comfortable and, coincidentally, even closer to Duo, before closing his eyes and drifting back off to sleep.

A couple of hours later, Duo reluctantly drifted awake, more than half convinced that he had only dreamed of making love with Heero throughout the night. He didn't want to face another day of hiding his feelings from his partner, so he kept his eyes closed and lay motionless, refusing to acknowledge the coming of the new day. That is, until he noticed the weight of the arm across his waist and the warm breath tickling the back of his neck. He jerked upright, hair flying, and turned to stare in shock and growing delight at Heero, lying beside him. Heero, having been awakened by Duo's abrupt movement, looked at him questioningly.

Duo smiled at him, a rare smile of true happiness. "It was real," he whispered softly. He lay back down, pushing his hair back across the top of the pillow and out of the way as he moved, and snuggled up against Heero. Heero wrapped his arms around Duo again, pulling him closer, loving the way Duo felt, lying against him. They lay there for a while, in silence, simply enjoying each other's presence. Duo, of course, was the first one to speak.

"Heero? Are you okay?"

"Hai."

"I mean, I know you're sore, but you're not in too much pain, are you? After all, last night was your first time. Maybe we shouldn't have..."

"Duo, I'm fine."

Duo tapped lightly on the arm around his waist and Heero granted the silent request, releasing him. He rolled away and moved to sit cross-legged on the bed, facing Heero, grumbling under his breath as his hair kept interfering with his movements. Heero rolled onto his back and watched, amused, as Duo continued to struggle with his hair, wincing whenever he accidentally pulled it. Duo caught the amused look and paused to glare at him.

"This is one of the biggest reasons why I always keep my hair in a braid!"

Heero's amusement faded and he gave him a thoughtful look. "What are the other reasons, Duo? And why do you keep your hair so long, anyway? It may be beautiful, but it's certainly impractical."

Duo, having finally reached a truce with his hair, bit his lip and looked down for a moment. When he looked back up, he had a wide grin plastered on his face. "It's not important. And, besides, you shouldn't try to change the subject. I'm still not convinced you're really okay. I've seen you set your own broken leg, you know, so..."

"Duo," Heero interrupted, frowning, "I told you, I'm fine. If you don't want to answer me, then just say so. You don't have to...to hide from me."

Duo froze and the false grin vanished. He took a long, deep breath and forced himself to look into Heero's eyes. "Gomen, Heero. Of the two of us, who would've thought that I'd be the one having trouble opening up?" He sighed heavily and looked away.

"My hair, and the braid I wear it in, serve as reminders of the people that I loved who have died. I'm the only one left to remember them, so I have to make sure that I never forget."

Duo's eyes were full of pain as he lost himself in his memories, and Heero regretted asking him. He never wanted to be the cause of such sorrow. He sat up and leaned forward to gently place a finger on Duo's lips, stopping him from continuing.

"Enough. You don't have to tell me any more."

Heero's touch and voice drew Duo out of the past and back into the present, but the pain and sorrow didn't fade from his eyes. He reached up to clasp Heero's hand in both of his, smiling slightly when Heero's fingers curled around his own. Their eyes met, and Duo pressed a brief kiss to Heero's fingers, before releasing his hand and getting up to go stand by the window. Heero frowned as he watched Duo. He didn't like this. Duo was always laughing and smiling, constantly on the move. The still, silent figure that stood before him, staring out the window, was not the Duo he knew, and it made him uneasy.

"Duo?"

Duo responded without turning around. "I'm alright, Heero. It's just that...well, if I'm going to stop hiding from you, then there are some things you need to know about me."

Heero's sense of unease grew. "Duo, you don't have to..."

"Yes, Heero, I do." Heero started to get up and go to him, but Duo, hearing him move, stopped him. "Don't. Please. Just stay over there and listen. If we want to have a relationship, other than friendship, then we both need to try to make some changes. You've stopped shutting me out, and I do have to stop hiding from you." He paused, waiting to see if Heero would comment. Hearing only silence, he continued.

"Sometimes I laugh and joke around to keep anyone from knowing how I really feel. My cheerfulness is a disguise, a persona that I've adopted to protect myself, just like the Perfect Soldier is for you."

"Hn."

Duo smiled slightly, unseen by Heero. "Yes, I know that that's what you do. It's kinda obvious, now that I know how you really feel. You use the Perfect Soldier as a mask, to hide your doubts whenever you're uncertain or confused about something. I use laughter the same way, but I also use it to help me deal with my past."

"I don't care about your past."

"Maybe you will, once you've heard about it."

"Iie."

"Heero, please. Let me tell you. If I don't tell you now, then I might not ever be able to, and I need to. For my own sake, if not for yours. I don't want to spend my time wondering when you're going to find out something about me that will make you turn away from me."

"Hn. Alright. But nothing you say will change the way I feel about you." Heero settled back down, sitting on the edge of the bed, and Duo, still staring out the window, relaxed slightly.

"Arigato, Heero."

Duo took a few deep breaths and began playing with his hair, using his fingers to work out some of the tangles, as he collected his thoughts. He was terrified that Heero would reject him, once he knew everything, and he waited until he was certain that his voice wouldn't betray that fear before he began to speak.

"I don't remember my parents or any of my family. My earliest memories are of being out on the streets and being taken in by a gang of street brats, led by a kid named Solo. It was tough, but we managed to survive, at least, until the plague hit. There was a vaccine for the disease, but they weren't gonna give any of it to worthless brats like us, so I went and stole some. Solo was sick, but he insisted that I give it to the younger kids first. By the time I'd given it to everyone else, well...he was my best friend and he died in my arms. Before he died, he told me that I would never be alone, that he would always be with me, so I named myself Duo, for the two of us. I didn't really have a name before then, at least, not that I remember. After that, I eventually ended up at the Maxwell Church orphanage."

Heero inhaled sharply, the first sound he'd made since Duo began speaking.

Duo nodded his head.

"Yes. That Maxwell Church. As far as I know, I'm the only survivor. And the only reason that I lived, was because I was out aggravating OZ to the point of destroying the church and killing everybody inside."

"I don't believe that!" Heero snapped, startling Duo enough that he turned to look at him. "Hai, I've heard of the Maxwell Church Massacre. When we became partners, I wanted to know more about where you came from, so I did some research on L2. I never saw anything about a child causing the commander of the local OZ forces to order the slaughter of innocent men, women, and children."

"But..."

"Iie. I know that you believe that it's your fault that they died, but I don't believe it, and I never will. Don't even bother trying to convince me."

Duo gave him a long, searching look and, concluding that Heero meant what he said, turned back to the window. "Anyway, a nun named Sister Helen taught me how to braid my hair. The church was named for Father Maxwell, and, when he and Sister Helen died, along with everyone else, I took his name as my own, and became Duo Maxwell. Dr. G found me shortly after that and, because of all of the deaths I've caused, with and without Deathscythe, I became Shinigami."

Duo fell silent, and, after several minutes, Heero spoke. "Is that all you wanted to tell me?"

"No." Duo took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Heero...Heero, there are only a few ways a kid on the streets can make money, and ...and, well..."

"Stop. Duo, look at me."

Duo turned, slowly and reluctantly, to face Heero again. Heero waited until Duo had raised his head to look at him, although he wouldn't quite meet his eyes. "Duo, let me tell you a little something about my past." Duo blinked at him, slightly confused, and nodded for Heero to continue. He wasn't sure why Heero wanted to tell him about his past right now, but Duo was grateful for the break from disclosing his own.

"My earliest memories are of traveling and training with a man named Odin Lowe. I don't know whether or not he was my father, since he died just before Dr. J found me, but he was an assassin, and he taught me a lot of what I know." He paused for a moment, taking in Duo's attentive expression. "Duo,...Odin told me something once. He told me to never look down on the people who stood on street corners and sold themselves to strangers, because we had similar jobs."

Duo's eyes widened and he stared at him blankly. Heero sighed and stated, bluntly, "Duo, he was saying that I should never look down on a whore, because assassins sell themselves to the highest bidder, too. Whores at least provide pleasure. Assassins just give death."

Duo flinched at the word "whore" and looked down. "Maybe, Heero, but does the assassin ever learn to enjoy his work?" he asked, tensing as he awaited Heero's reaction.

"Baka!" Heero made a disgusted sound and got off the bed, coming to stand in front of Duo. He reached out a hand to cup Duo's chin, lifting his head until their eyes met.

"Did you really think that I hadn't noticed your sexual experience and guessed how you had gotten it? And do you really think that I mind that you learned how to please yourself, when you were forced to please others?"

Shaking off the hand holding his chin, Duo stared at him in shock. "But, Heero..."

"I didn't care last night, and I don't care now."

Duo's shock faded slightly and his eyes narrowed as something occurred to him. "Wait a minute. You figured it out last night?"

"Hai."

"When?" Duo demanded.

"Nani?" Heero asked, slightly puzzled.

"When, exactly, did you figure out that you were sharing your bed with an ex-whore?!" He was obviously getting angry and Heero didn't know why, but he told him what he wanted to know.

"While I was waiting for you to come back with the towels and the lotion."

"Heero!" Duo exploded, "How could you risk yourself like that?! If you knew before we made love, then why didn't you at least suggest some type of protection? You may be inexperienced, but you're not ignorant, and you know damn well that whores are often carriers of various types of sexually transmitted diseases! You had no way of knowing whether or not I'm clean!"

"Aren't you?"

"Yes, but you couldn't have known that!"

"Duo, you asked me to trust you. I do."

Duo's mind went blank and he froze, staring at Heero in total shock. His mouth worked silently as he tried to form a coherent thought, only now beginning to realize just how thoroughly Heero had committed himself to Duo when he admitted that he loved and trusted him.

"You said that you loved me. I knew that you wouldn't risk making love with me if there was any danger to me."

Duo finally found his voice. "Oh, God, Heero," he whispered hoarsely, before stepping forward to fling his arms around Heero, hiding his face against his neck. Heero wrapped his arms around Duo's shaking body, slowly stroking his back and hair. "I'm sorry, Heero. I didn't realize...I didn't understand..."

"It's alright, Duo. But do you believe me now? That I meant it when I said that nothing you say will change the way I feel about you?"

Duo nodded, without raising his head, and tightened his hold on Heero.

They stood there for a long time, long after Duo had stopped shaking, until a soft voice interrupted them. "Hey, you two. Don't forget, you have company arriving this afternoon."

They looked around and found Katherine, standing at the foot of the bed, smiling gently at them. A smile that quickly turned into a smirk, as she looked them up and down. "Love the fashion statement, boys, but I doubt your friends will enjoy it quite as much."

She snickered as Duo, only then realizing that he was still naked, yelped and dove for the bed, snatching up the blankets to cover himself. He might be something of an exhibitionist, but full nudity was a bit much, in his opinion. Heero didn't bother with a cover, he simply crossed his arms over his chest and glared at her. Katherine, unrepentant, grinned back at him.

Her grin vanished almost immediately, to be replaced by a sultry look. "You know, Heero," she said, as seductively as she could manage while suppressing laughter, "you look pretty good in your spandex, but I'd have to say, you look even better without it." Heero's eyes widened and his arms twitched, as he resisted the urge to conceal what Katherine was so blatantly eyeing. He was determined to keep from reacting to her teasing.

Katherine, gleefully accepting the unspoken challenge, sidled a little closer. "And how do you keep that lean, muscular body of yours in such good condition?"

She took a step towards him, and Heero stubbornly stood his ground, his expression becoming slightly panicked. "Really, Heero. With that hair, those eyes, and that body, you look good enough to eat. And I haven't eaten in centuries, you know." She licked her lips suggestively and took one more step towards him.

That did it. Heero broke, ducking around her and heading straight for Duo. He snatched at the blankets and turned to face her, glaring, as he hid himself from her view. Duo, who had been desperately trying to control his amusement, promptly fell to the floor, convulsing with laughter, although he had enough presence of mind to make sure he was still covered by a blanket. Several minutes passed as Duo tried to calm himself down, but he burst out laughing again every time he looked up, to see Heero glaring daggers at Katherine, while she smirked back.

Eventually, Duo regained enough control to speak. "Heero, she's a ghost! It's not like she can actually touch you or anything."

Heero's glare was transferred to Duo for a moment, and then went back to Katherine, who started snickering again. Duo didn't notice, due to the fact that his hair had taken advantage of his distraction to launch a full scale attack. A few more minutes passed until Duo, having temporarily gotten the upper hand against his hair, managed to rise to his feet. Finding the other two still locked in a staring contest, he decided that he had had enough.

"Oi, Katherine, back off a little, will ya. He's mine, you know."

The smirk disappeared and the sultry expression came back, this time directed at Duo. "Well, if he's off limits, tell me, Duo, have you been...claimed...by him?"

Duo gaped at her, torn between laughter and outrage, and Heero growled at her, trying to ignore the fact that his face was turning crimson. Katherine smirked again, her gaze going back and forth between the two, waiting for them to respond. Duo cleared his throat and gave her a stern look, shaking his finger at her.

"Bad ghost. Naughty ghost. Hentai. You should be ashamed."

Katherine attempted looking contrite. "I'm sorry, Daddy, but I just can't help it," she whined. "I know I've been a bad girl." Her expression turned sly again. "Maybe Daddy should give me a spanking," she said, eyeing what she could see of them.

Duo opened his mouth to respond, but Heero, remembering some of the things he had read in her journal, wasn't about to let them continue. "Duo," he barked, "Don't encourage her!"

Both of them gave him slightly annoyed looks, and Katherine went so far as to stick her tongue out at him and blow him a raspberry . Heero rolled his eyes in response, causing Duo to snicker.

"Did you have a reason for disturbing us?" Heero asked, before she could distract him again.

"I just wanted to remind you that your friends are arriving this afternoon. You might want to get cleaned up, eat something, and make up a couple of beds for them."

"It is beginning to get a little late. We need to get moving pretty soon. Thanks, Katherine," Duo said, absent-mindedly dismissing her. All of his attention was focused back on his partner and, realizing that they still had a couple of things to resolve, Katherine took the hint and vanished. Heero and Duo simply looked at each other for a moment.

"Heero, can I ask you something?" Heero nodded, slightly wary. Duo rarely requested permission before he asked a question. He usually just asked what he wanted to know.

"The other day, you drew a parallel between your life and Katherine's." Heero winced. He had thought that that might be what Duo wanted to know about. "Heero, I've already figured out that you feel trapped into repeating the missions over and over again, but, eventually, the war will end. You'll be free then. We all will be."

"Iie."

"What do you mean, no?"

"I'm a soldier, a terrorist, an assassin. Causing death and destruction is all I've ever known. What happens when I'm no longer required to kill and destroy? What do I do then?" Their eyes met, and Duo was shocked to see the lost expression in Heero's eyes. He reached out and tugged on the blankets that Heero was still holding, pulling them out of his hands and dropping them on the floor, before stepping forward to embrace him.

"Oh, Heero," he whispered into Heero's ear. "I'll be with you. I'm not exactly your normal citizen, either, but I bet we can find a way to make it work. I'm sure Quatre can help us, or at least, help us find somebody, who can teach us what it is to live a normal life, where we don't have to kill anymore."

Heero hugged him back, fiercely, and, after a few moments, Duo pulled away slightly, to look at him searchingly. "There's something else, isn't there."

Heero was a little dismayed to hear the certainty in his voice. He reluctantly met Duo's gaze and could easily read the determination in his eyes. Duo wasn't going to let him keep silent about it any longer. He sighed heavily and nodded.

"There is this...emptiness...this void inside me. You...being with you...seems to make it go away. I...it..." Duo silenced him with a kiss, hard and passionate. Heero responded instantly, without thought, and, when they broke for air, Duo spoke.

"What you're talking about is probably loneliness. That's why being with me makes you feel better, you're not alone any more. I can't always be with you, though, so there will still be times when you feel that way. Heero, koi, I love you and I will never abandon you, no matter what happens. I want you to remember that, and, when you're feeling lonely, think of me. Think of the love we share and just how much you mean to me. It may not completely fill that void, but it should help."

Heero looked into Duo's eyes, and the love he saw in them took his breath away. Duo felt as much love for him as he did for Duo. He had never even dared to hope that anyone would ever love him so, much less someone he loved in return. He took a deep, shuddering breath and nodded, accepting Duo's words and the emotion behind them. Duo smiled at him before closing the distance between them and kissing him again.

Heero broke off the kiss after a moment, and brought a hand up to gently caress Duo's cheek, smiling at him slightly. "Enough. Go. Take a shower and get your stuff. We're moving into the master bedroom. Quatre and Trowa can have these rooms."

Duo pouted at him. The embrace had aroused both boys, and Duo wasn't exactly willing to ignore their condition. He looked at Heero, looked at the bed, and then back at Heero, obviously believing that it wouldn't take much to convince Heero to go back to bed. Heero smirked at him.

"Iie. If we get back in bed, Katherine will probably interrupt us again. At the worst possible time, too." Duo eyes widened. He had somehow managed to forget about the ghost.

"Oi, Heero, you don't think she was watching us last night, do you?"

Heero just smirked at him again and then turned and walked away, slowly, making sure that Duo was watching him. He bent down to get some clean clothes, rifling through the contents of a drawer, and giving Duo plenty of time to enjoy the view. Eventually, he found what he was looking for, and headed for the shower, deliberately swaying his hips as he padded into the bathroom and shut the door.

Duo, mesmerized by Heero's little show, stared at the closed door in disbelief. He looked down at his aching arousal and then back at the door, shaking his head. "Just what I needed, Heero, the Tease. Hmm, now how can I make him pay for that?" Several minutes passed as he stood there, considering various ways of making his lover pay. Suddenly, his eyes lit up and he grinned, wickedly. "Oh, tonight's gonna be fun!" Snickering, he headed for his own room.

Katherine watched him leave, wondering if she should see about finding a way to get her journal to him. She shook her head, grinning, as she decided it wasn't necessary. Duo had plenty of ideas of his own. She could hardly wait to see what he was going to do!

tbc...


	14. Part 14

Author's Notes:

Quatre and Trowa finally turn up in this part, and I warn you, I'm not as comfortable writing for them as I am for Heero and Duo, so be prepared for that. Also, Heero, in particular, is getting more and more out of character, but that is because I am trying to get him away from the Perfect Soldier. It's called "character growth", and if that doesn't satisfy you, then just call it my version of him and yell at me for it. Nothing spectacular in this part, kind of a transition part, but I hope you enjoy!

Helping Hands part 14 

Quatre walked slowly up the gravel road, heading towards the house at the top of the hill. His footsteps were heavy and his normally cheerful face had a closed, withdrawn expression. When Trowa stepped out of the forest that the road wound through, Quatre made an effort to greet him with his usual good humor, but the effort failed. He was too tired and battle-weary to offer a genuine smile to his partner. Trowa shot him a concerned glance, but stayed silent as he joined him on the road.

After a few minutes of walking, Quatre could no longer ignore the brief, concerned looks that Trowa kept giving him. "I'm fine, Trowa."

Trowa glanced at him again, this time with disbelief.

Quatre sighed. "Okay, I'm not fine, but I will be, if I can just get some rest."

"I was told that there will not be any more missions for at least three months."

"Yes, that's what I was told, as well. I really need this break, too. I'm so tired of all of the senseless deaths and destruction."

Trowa had nothing to say to that, so they continued their walk in silence.

Quatre lost himself in his thoughts once again, mentally recapping the battles he had recently fought and tallying the damage done to Sandrock. Since this was to be a vacation of sorts, the Maganacs were not joining the pilots. This meant that Quatre was going to have to repair Sandrock himself. He forced himself to concentrate on his Gundam, hidden, like Heavyarms, in the forest nearby, rather than dwell on the number of people he had killed in each battle, as had become his habit lately.

Trowa, meanwhile, scanned the forest around them as they walked, alert for possible enemies. They were in friendly territory though, and with Heero Yuy playing watchdog over the area, Trowa felt safe enough to relax his guard a little and let his thoughts roam. He was, as Quatre had perceived, worried about his partner. His lips quirked slightly in amusement as it occurred to him that Quatre was one of a very small number of people who knew him well enough to read his expressions so easily. Quatre occasionally teased him about it, saying that Trowa spoke so rarely that Quatre had learned how to have entire conversations with him without Trowa ever saying a word. The slight smile faded as he realized that Quatre hadn't teased him about that, or anything else, for several weeks. Trowa had grown up with mercenaries, so he was far more accustomed to back-to-back missions than Quatre. Trowa might be tired, but Quatre was utterly worn out.

The two continued walking, Trowa still looking around and Quatre, with his head bowed, not paying much attention to their surroundings. When they reached the top of the hill, Trowa paused, looking over the house and the clearing in which it sat. Quatre continued on a few steps before he realized that Trowa was no longer beside him and stopped. He half turned to look back at Trowa and then, understanding what he was doing, faced the house again. Quatre was not as concerned with the defensive capabilities of the house as Trowa was, but he decided to take a good, long look at it anyway.

As he focused on the house, he sensed something strange, an energy, almost a presence. Frowning, he reached out with his empathy, probing, trying to determine exactly what it was that he sensed. He was totally unprepared for the result.

A soft, strangled cry caught Trowa's attention, his gaze snapping back to his partner. Quatre's body had stiffened, as though in pain or shock, and, as Trowa watched, he went limp and began to collapse. Trowa leapt across the few feet that separated them and caught him from behind, gently lowering him the rest of the way to the ground. He swiftly looked over Quatre's body, searching for an injury. Finding nothing obviously wrong, he examined Quatre's face.

Quatre was staring at the house, his eyes locked onto it, unable to look away. He was panting, struggling to get air into his lungs, and his face was unusually pale. Trowa knelt down behind Quatre and lifted him slightly, wrapping an arm around his shoulders and pulling him close, supporting him. He took care not to move between Quatre and the house, and, as he held him against his chest, he could feel Quatre's heart pounding at a dangerously fast rate.

Several seconds went by, with no change in Quatre's condition and Trowa decided he couldn't wait any longer. He took a deep breath, reached out, and deliberately placed his hand in front of Quatre's eyes, blocking his view of the house.

Quatre immediately began breathing easier and he closed his eyes, resting in Trowa's arms, as his heart rate slowly went back to normal and the color came back into his face. When he opened his eyes again, he found Trowa watching him, patiently waiting for an explanation. He smiled weakly at him, trying to reassure him. Trowa frowned in response. Quatre shook his head at him, slightly exasperated.

"I'm not injured, Trowa. I just did something really stupid and paid the price for it. Now help me up, please. I need to talk to Heero."

Trowa hesitated for a moment and then nodded. He helped Quatre to stand and kept an arm around him, steadying him, as the two slowly made their way across the clearing and into the house. 

Inside, Heero and Duo were in the kitchen, preparing an early dinner for the four of them. The pilots had developed routines for how to handle the inevitable chores, such as cooking and laundry. Whenever four of them were together, they took care of the cooking and dishes in pairs, one pair playing host to the other. This time, of course, Heero and Duo were the hosts and Heero had promised they would have dinner waiting when the other two arrived. Katherine had been watching them for most of the day, invisible, as they worked, taking care of the chores that had been neglected during their search for the journal, before heading to the kitchen to fix dinner.

"How long?" Duo asked.

"Almost an hour. They should be coming in any minute."

"They're coming up the drive now." Katherine said, materializing near the doorway to the rest of the house. "How did you know?"

Duo stopped chopping tomatoes long enough to wave a greeting to her, but went back to making his salad without answering her question.

"This." She looked and saw Heero tapping a small device that was sitting on the countertop. Once he was sure he had her attention, he moved to the breakfast nook, to the side of the kitchen. He began setting the table, talking as he worked. "It has many functions, including a link to our Gundams and their security systems. We have various security protocols to verify each other's identities and Duo and I were both alerted as soon as they came within range. Because of this, I know what time they got here and, from experience, I know approximately how long it takes to secure the Gundams." He paused a moment, to make sure she was following his explanation, and frowned when he realized she wasn't really listening. She was looking back and forth between him and Duo and seemed somewhat distracted.

"Katherine..." Heero began, his frown edging into a glare.

She blinked and focused her attention back on him. "I heard you. That thing on the counter that looks like a cross between a pocket notebook and a cell phone told you that they were here." She shrugged, dismissing the subject. "Now that you've answered that question, I have another one for you. Why weren't you surprised when I spoke up? I've managed to surprise you every other time."

She was not happy when Heero simply smirked at her and, finished with the table, began getting drinks for everyone. Realizing that he wasn't going to answer her question this time, she turned to Duo. He had finished preparing the salad, and was busy cleaning up the mess he had made on the counter. He grinned at her and snickered softly at her annoyance.

"Heero and I have both been in situations where we were under constant surveillance. We both know how to act, or rather, not react when an unseen watcher speaks up suddenly. It's just that the fact that you're a ghost had thrown us off a little. You're not going to be able to startle us again."

"Well, Hell!" She pouted at the two of them and Heero smirked at her as Duo continued snickering. "Oh, well, I'll just have to find some other way to play with you two." Their amusement fled and it was Katherine's turn to laugh, as they both looked slightly disconcerted.

Suddenly, her head snapped around and, laughter gone, she stared toward the front of the house. "Son of a BITCH! I'd forgotten he was an empath! I didn't think he be stupid enough to..." She looked worried, almost fearful, and she vanished without completing her sentence.

"Empath?", Duo asked. "Quatre?" Heero nodded. "What do you think he did? Do you think he's okay? And how would she know he's an empath?"

"I don't know. He should be fine, he's with Trowa. Through my dreams." Duo quirked an eyebrow at him, waiting for him to continue. "Remember, last night, she said she had manipulated my dreams."

Duo nodded. "I was a little more concerned with other things, but yeah, I remember her saying that."

"When I went back to bed the other night, after the first time we saw her, I remember having some really vivid dreams." Heero paused and Duo was delighted to see a faint blush on his cheeks. "They were no where near as vivid as the dreams you and I shared, but you were in several of them." He paused again, this time, because of Duo.

The kitchen and the breakfast nook were separated by a long, split-level counter. The higher level served as a bar on the breakfast nook side and the lower level was an open counter on the kitchen side. Heero had finished getting drinks for everyone and was simply standing by the bar as they talked. Duo, meanwhile, had been working on the counter on the other side.

Heero had fallen silent because Duo had abandoned his position at the counter and was circling around it, approaching Heero with an expression that made him slightly nervous. It was identical to the one Duo had worn the last time he had teased Heero. The one that Heero now knew was a cross between mischief and desire.

Duo stopped, directly in front of Heero, almost, but not quite, close enough for their bodies to touch. "So, tell me, koi. What did I miss?", he asked, his voice low and husky.

"Nothing," Heero answered, standing stiffly, frozen in place. He was confused, torn between desire and uncertainty. He desperately wanted to kiss Duo, or, at least, touch him, but their relationship was too new. He didn't know how to react to Duo's teasing, how Duo expected him to react, and Heero was worried about doing something wrong. Something that would drive Duo away. So, he held himself still and tried to focus on their conversation, instead of Duo's nearness. "We just talked. Mostly about ourselves and the others."

"So, you figure Katherine was manipulating the conversation to learn about all of us." Heero simply nodded and stared longingly at Duo's mouth.

Duo reach out a hand to brush the hair out of Heero's eyes and then brought it down to cup his face, his thumb brushing across Heero's cheek, caressing it gently. Heero reacted without thinking and leaned into the touch, closing his eyes and nuzzling the hand slightly, before he realized what he was doing and froze again.

"Heero, look at me."

He reluctantly complied, opening his eyes to meet Duo's gaze, and then blinked, startled at what he saw. Duo's eyes no longer held desire, but sorrow instead.

"Duo?"

"With the way I've been leaning on you every chance I get, you've gotten used to me touching you, haven't you. And you don't have a problem reaching out to me when you know I need you, like this morning, do you." The hand dropped away from his face, and Heero suddenly found that he could move again. He reached out and wrapped both arms around Duo, pulling him close. He hid his face against Duo's shoulder and simply held him tightly, not wanting to see any more of Duo's sadness. Duo sighed softly and embraced Heero in return.

"You see? I need you to hold me and you do. You just don't know how to reach out when you need to be held. Or to touch me just because you want to and you can. Or how to respond to my teasing. You must have been so alone as a child. Now, you have difficulty even admitting that you have needs and desires, forget about fulfilling them." He sighed again.

"Gomen nasai," he heard, muffled against his shoulder. He pulled away from Heero slightly, separating them enough that they could see each other. Heero still hadn't put any of his walls back up and his normally impassive face was quite unhappy. Duo felt his sorrow melt away as he took in Heero's expression. The past could not be changed, no matter how much he wished otherwise, so he decided to focus on the present and the future. Besides, Heero really was absolutely adorable when he pouted.

"Heero no baka. It's not your fault. It's just something we have to work on."

His amusement was obvious, and Heero gave him a confused look and then shrugged slightly. He had never been able to follow Duo's quick mood changes before, and he wasn't going to try now.

"Work on how?" he asked, letting go of Duo completely.

"Well," Duo said thoughtfully, "You like to try to follow your emotions, right?" He went back around the counter, grabbed the salad, and brought it to the table.

"Hai," Heero answered warily, getting a couple of bottles of dressing for the salad. He wasn't sure where Duo was going with this line of thought.

"Desire is an emotion. If you want to touch me, kiss me, make love with me, whatever, act on it. Within reason, of course."

Heero found this to be an intriguing idea. "Define 'within reason'."

"Well, you're not likely to rip my clothes off and go down on me in front of Quatre and Trowa, now, are you?"

Heero gave him a mild glare. "Hn. Baka."

Duo just grinned.

They heard the front door slam open and Trowa's voice, calling for Heero.

"We're in the back, in the kitchen," Duo yelled back. Glancing at Heero, he said softly, "We'll talk about this some more later." Heero nodded.

A moment later, Quatre and Trowa appeared in the doorway, Quatre still leaning heavily on Trowa. Duo and Heero were not really surprised by Quatre's condition, thanks to Katherine. Concerned about him, Duo quickly moved to help Trowa get him seated.

"Quatre, are you hurt?"

Quatre shook his head. "No, Duo, I'm just tired." He refused Duo's offer of help and gently pushed Trowa away, freeing himself from his partner's embrace. He walked the few steps to the table without any assistance and then collapsed into a chair. While his friends watched, he pushed the plate aside and then rested his arms and head on the table. He closed his eyes, sighed heavily, and relaxed.

"Trowa, what happened?" Heero's voice was cold, demanding a report, and he hadn't moved since Quatre and Trowa had entered the room. Duo tensed at the tone of his voice, and turned to look at his lover, afraid of what he would see. He was incredibly relieved to find that Heero's face reflected the concern he felt for Quatre, rather than the impassive mask that Duo had expected to see. Turning his attention back to the other two pilots, Duo abruptly realized that the coldness was actually for their benefit. They were obviously slightly shaken and an uncharacteristic display of concern from Heero would only rattle them further. Instead, Heero's cold tone was reassuringly familiar. Duo smiled slightly as he listened to Trowa's response.

"Nothing unusual until we reached the top of the drive. Quatre looked at the house and then collapsed. He was unable to look away, his heart rate was accelerated, and he was having difficulty breathing. He remained in that state until I blocked his view of the house. When he had recovered enough to speak, he said that he had done something stupid, paid the price, and wanted to speak to you. I then assisted him into the house."

Trowa's gaze never left Quatre as he spoke, and Heero was frowning when he completed his report. "Quatre?"

Quatre was feeling a little better, and looked it, when he sat back up in his chair and looked at Heero. "It's rather involved and I'm tired and hungry. I'd prefer to wait until after we've eaten, if you don't mind, Heero. A short delay won't affect the situation."

Heero was still frowning slightly, but he nodded and the other three joined Quatre at the table. As they sat down and began eating the salad, Duo, true to form, started talking.

"Oi, Quatre, you won't believe this place once you get a chance to look around. It's incredible! I was..um..looking around in the attic, and I found..."

Duo continued chattering as they ate, with Quatre commenting at the appropriate places. Heero and Trowa ate silently, listening to the other two talk. Each of them watched his partner's every move and tried not to be obvious about it. It was a typical meal for the four of them and the familiarity of the situation went a long way towards putting them all at ease.

Quatre was able to forget about the war for a while and simply enjoy the company of his friends. He regained a good portion of his usual cheer and was smiling easily as he chatted with Duo.

Trowa, watching Quatre, was able to let go of some of the concerns that had been bothering him over the past few weeks. Quatre's mood had improved almost as soon as he had sat down, and, for the first time, Trowa found himself thinking that maybe Quatre had been right. Maybe he did just need to take a break and rest for a while.

Heero and Duo had relaxed as well, and it became quite apparent as they finished the last of their salads and got ready to serve the rest of the meal.

"...of course, I don't know how long the CD player has been up there, but there are several unlabeled CDs in another box nearby, so I've decided to see if it still works and check out what's on those CDs. I don't know what I'll find, but we'll see. Okay, everybody done with the salad?" Duo paused long enough to breath, but not for anyone to respond. "Cool. Heero, koi, why don't you get everything out of the oven while I clear off the salad dishes."

Heero nodded and stood, but didn't actually walk away from the table. He watched as Duo picked up a couple of plates and headed toward the kitchen sink and waited for Quatre's voice to start working again.

"So, anyway, I'm hoping that most of those disks are music or video CDs. If they're data disks, that would spoil all my fun. Those are Heero's toys, not mine."

"Duo, did you just call Heero 'koi'?" Quatre asked, interrupting him.

Duo, halfway back to the table, froze in mid-step. He winced, only then realizing what he had said, and looked at Quatre and Trowa. Quatre was beaming and practically bouncing up and down in his chair in excitement. Trowa, not knowing quite as many languages as the head of the Winner empire, had simply raised an eyebrow and was looking from pilot to pilot, waiting patiently for one of the three to fill him in on the significance of the word.

"Oops," Duo muttered, giving them a sheepish grin. "Umm...yeah, well..." Realizing that, for once, he had no idea of what to say, he looked at Heero.

Heero was still standing by the table, glaring at Duo with a rather forbidding expression. He had not had a lot of time to think about how the other pilots would react to the changes in his relationship with Duo, but, knowing Duo as he did, he was not really surprised that Duo had accidentally let the others know. Let Quatre know, anyway. Trowa was still unaware of exactly what was going on. 

Heero abruptly decided that, with Quatre's empathy, it was useless to try to keep such a thing secret and, with typical bluntness, set about making certain that the other two pilots understood the exact nature of his relationship with Duo.

"It's short for koibito, which can be translated as lover," Heero stated calmly, looking at Quatre and Trowa. "Appropriate, since that is what he is to me. We're sharing the master bedroom at the top of the stairs, down the right-hand hallway, last room. I do not recommend entering unannounced after we have gone to bed." He smiled slightly at the stunned looks he was receiving, and headed into the kitchen to retrieve the food that had been all but forgotten.

tbc..


	15. Part 15

Yes, I'm finally updating. You can thank Iaka and Catherina for that. I only have two or three more chapters planned for this story, but I don't know when I'll get around to actually writing and posting them. My beta walked off on me and did so in a way that totally ruined my enjoyment of writing this story. It's only because of Iaka and Catherina reminding me that I'm not the only one who would be disappointed that I'm continuing at all. I'm hoping that some new reviews and your reactions to how this chapter ends will renew my enthusiasm and I can continue with the story. That's not a threat, by the way, I'm going to try to finish it, whether or not I get reviews, but I'll write faster if I'm enjoying it and looking forward to the reactions of you readers. Please, give me something to look forward to? I hope you enjoy this one.

Helping Hands Part 15

The invisible watcher observed the scene with interest, wondering what would happen next. Heero was on the far side of the kitchen, taking dishes out of the oven. His back was to the others, so his expression was hidden, but the ghost was certain that he was smirking. Duo was standing near the table in the breakfast nook, looking both guilty and unhappy. Quatre and Trowa were still seated at the table, facing the kitchen. They could see Duo's face clearly, since he had been heading to the table when he had accidentally let slip the hint about the recent developments in his relationship with Heero. He hadn't moved since Heero had spoken up, and his reaction confused their friends.

Quatre had been about to congratulate them, but, watching Duo, he wasn't sure that this was such good news after all. Duo was obviously unhappy about something to do with Heero's statement that they were lovers, but Quatre didn't know what. Trowa, not being the type to concern himself with the personal relationships of the other pilots, was simply waiting patiently for the food to be served so that they could continue their meal. He was far more preoccupied with Quatre's collapse and the promised after-dinner discussion than the fact that Heero and Duo had become lovers.

After a moment, Quatre decided that the silence had gone on long enough and had opened his mouth to speak, when Duo moved. Ignoring his friends at the table, he walked back into the kitchen and approached Heero.

"Heero, I..."

"It's okay, Duo," Heero said, closing the oven door and turning to face his partner.

"But..."

"Duo, we couldn't have kept it a secret from them, even if we wanted to. I know we haven't had a chance to discuss this, but I really don't mind if they know." He stepped close and pulled Duo into a hug, knowing that such a blatant display of affection in front of their friends would reassure Duo far more than anything he could say.

Duo sighed with relief and hugged him back. "As long as you're not angry with me, I don't care who knows. Don't think this conversation's over with, though. This is something else we need to discuss."

Heero pulled back and gave him a mock frown. "Hn."

Duo grinned back at him and shook his head. "Like a frown is going to stop me. Oh, well, that's later. For now, let's eat!"

Heero smiled at him slightly and they separated, Duo heading back to clear the rest of the salad dishes and Heero turning back to the food on top of the stove, to carry it to the table.

As Duo walked over to them, Quatre got up and walked around the table to meet him, giving him a hug before sitting back down, and Trowa nodded at him, smiling widely, at least for Trowa. Both of them hid their surprise at Heero's behavior.

Quatre waited until Heero and Duo had both finished their tasks and sat back down, before actually voicing his happiness at the news and questioning the two of them about the changes. Heero and Duo looked at each other and Duo shrugged.

"After dinner," Heero said. "It has to do with what we need to tell you about the house." He refused to say anything more on the subject, and the four pilots went back to eating their meal, Duo and Quatre chatting about nothing in particular.

After they had all finished eating, Quatre and Trowa went into the library, to wait for Heero and Duo, as they cleaned up and prepared a tray with dessert, tea, and coffee.

The ghost, after a moment of indecision, decided to follow Quatre and Trowa, and watched as they each sat down in a leather armchair and relaxed. They were both quiet, with Trowa watching Quatre, who appeared to be deep in thought and unaware of his partner's gaze.

After a few minutes of silence, Quatre looked up at Trowa and spoke. "What do you think?"

Trowa raised an eyebrow at him.

"About Heero's behavior. He's had feelings for Duo for some time now, but he's never been so open about it."

Trowa shrugged slightly.

"I know you don't think it's any of our business and that they're both professional enough not to let it affect the missions, but what do you think? You know what I'm asking, Trowa."

"Yuy believes in acting on one's emotions, and that's what he seems to be doing. He's always been open about his emotions, except when it would affect a mission. Duo needed the reassurance, so Heero was openly affectionate towards him. It's typical for Heero."

Quatre nodded. "That's what I thought, too." He looked slightly concerned. "I just hope that the whole relationship isn't just because Duo needs it. I don't dare use my empathy again while I'm in this house, but I'd really be a lot less concerned if I knew for certain how Heero felt."

Trowa raised an eyebrow at him again.

"I know, I know, I just can't help worrying about them."

"Who?" asked Duo as he entered the room, Heero right behind him. Heero was carrying a tray with the desserts, tea, and coffee, which he set down on a small table.

"You two," Quatre answered, after a brief hesitation.

"Why?" Duo asked. Quatre just shrugged in response and Duo shook his head at him. "Yeah, well, I'm worried about you," he said, serving the tea and coffee. Heero gave everyone a small plate with their dessert on it, and then he and Duo sat down together on a small couch, close, but not touching.

When everyone was settled, Heero, in a slightly warmer tone than usual, asked, "Alright, Quatre, what happened when you saw the house?"

"Well, I'm not sure how much you know about empathy, so let me say a little about it." He looked around and, not seeing any objections, continued.

"There are varying degrees of sensitivity and, um, levels of skill, I guess you could say. Empathy is the ability to sense emotions, but it can sometimes go beyond that. There are places, inanimate objects that can be the focus of a lot of emotion and absorb that emotion. Sometimes, to the point that an inanimate object can almost feel alive, like it has an actual personality of its own. Our Gundams are like that."

He paused as Duo nodded in agreement and Trowa looked thoughtful. Heero just frowned slightly and nodded at him to continue.

"Places don't usually develop a personality, but if something tragic has happened there, the sense of it tends to linger. Happiness and contentment can also leave an imprint, but it takes a lot longer to build up to that point, and the shock and horror of a sudden death, for example, can overwhelm the imprint of happiness, so all you feel is the negative emotions. This house is full of negative emotions, so much so that it not only overwhelms any positive feelings, but it overwhelmed me, as well. When I first saw the house, I sensed something. I wasn't sure what it was, so I decided to use my empathy to reach out to it. I wasn't expecting it to bite me."

"Bite you?" Duo asked, a little confused. Trowa's face went blank and Heero's frown deepened.

"Yes. The emotions I sensed grabbed a hold of me and wouldn't let go. I couldn't break the link, but when Trowa put his hand in front of my eyes, he broke it for me. It was so strong, I could swear this house is alive, with a personality, and that's just not normal, not for a place or building."

"Um, Quatre, did it ever occur to you that that was a really stupid thing to do? I mean, if it was something so strong that you could sense it without even trying, maybe you shouldn't be poking it with a stick to see what comes out?"

"Yes, Duo, I know it was stupid. I've been so tired lately that I wasn't really thinking. I just 'poked it' without stopping to consider any possible consequences."

"Well, so long as we're clear that is was stupid and you shouldn't do it again."

"We're clear, Duo." Quatre rolled his eyes, slightly exasperated with Duo's 'big brother' act. Trowa alone was bad enough, he didn't need Duo trying to protect him, too.

"And don't think I haven't noticed how exhausted you are. When you're that tired, you start making mistakes and that could get you, or your partner, killed." Duo shook a warning finger in Quatre's direction.

"Duo,..." Quatre started, not in the least amused at the implication that he would risk harm to Trowa.

"He has made no mistakes." Trowa broke in, frowning at Duo.

"Yeah, but..."

"Enough. Duo, I understand you're worried about Quatre, but you should know he is well able to determine whether or not he is capable of completing a mission. Quatre, your exhaustion has impaired your judgment slightly, or you wouldn't have used your empathy on the house. I know that this was not a mission, but you did put yourself unnecessarily at risk."

By this time, Heero was being glared at by both Duo and Quatre, while Trowa was still frowning at Duo. Heero's statements were true, and they all knew it, even though Duo and Quatre didn't appreciate being lectured.

"I know he can take care of himself. And Trowa, if necessary."

"And I know I need to rest and recuperate before I accept another mission. That's why I'm here, instead of with Wufei."

"Then we don't have a problem. Quatre, we may have an explanation for what you sensed. Duo, tell them about Katherine and the house."

Duo's frown instantly vanished and he enthusiastically told Trowa and Quatre about their arrival at the house, the story of Katherine and Benjamin, and their first meeting with the ghost, although he skipped the parts about Heero and Katherine having similar fates and exactly why he had been having trouble sleeping when Katherine had shown up. He also left out the bit about his fainting spell. Quatre and Trowa weren't quite as willing to drop the previous topic of conversation, but the story Duo told was too fantastic for them to ignore. Their reactions amused Duo greatly.

"There are no such things as ghosts."

"You guys don't really expect us to believe that you saw a 300-year-old ghost, do you?"

"Oh, come on, Quatre, you said yourself that the house is alive."

"Yes, but I was talking about an emotional imprint, not an actual spirit, a soul that has refused to move on after death."

"Oh, but that's not the best part. She said our presence here allows her to focus on what's happening here and now, and she can actually interact with us. She loves to torment Heero, which is hilarious, by the way, and she can link our dreams. That's actually how Heero and I got together." Trowa and Quatre stared at him in disbelief and confusion.

"Um, Duo, would you care to explain that?"

"Well, ah, she linked our dreams and some stuff happened and we realized how we felt about each other and then we found out that the dreams were more than just dreams and one thing led to another and here we are."

"Duo, why do I get the feeling that you are leaving out quite a bit?"

"It's private, Quatre." Heero spoke up, before Duo could say any more. "I don't mind you knowing that Duo and I are lovers, but the details of our relationship are none of your business."

"Fair enough, Heero. About this ghost, though..."

"That should be simple enough to prove. Oi, Katherine! Show-and-Tell time!"

The ghost, who had been listening the entire time, considered making an appearance, but decided against it. The time wasn't quite right. Also, Katherine was still quite displeased with Quatre and had no intention of getting to know him yet.

"Katherine, come on! I want you to meet my friends."

"Um, Duo..." Quatre started, but Heero interrupted him.

"Don't bother, Duo."

"But, Heero!"

"You know her, she'll show up when they least expect it, not when we ask her to."

"Yeah, you have a point. Sorry, guys, you'll just have to take our word for it, for now." Trowa and Quatre looked at him skeptically.

"It doesn't really matter whether or not she exists, we're still searching for the journal, and I'd like you two to help."

Quatre and Trowa looked at one another and then back at Heero. Quatre spoke for them both. "Heero, I don't think that this is something Trowa and I should get involved with. We're here to relax and rest, and searching a house from top to bottom just doesn't sound that restful to me."

"Heavyarms and Sandrock both require repairs," was Trowa's comment.

"Yes, and we need to take care of that, as well. Although, I don't think I'll be working on Sandrock for a couple of days, yet. I have to get some replacement parts shipped in first. Trowa?"

Trowa inclined his head slightly.

"Alright," Heero responded, frowning slightly. "This is not a mission, so I'm not making it an order." He had been hoping that they would help, since the four of them could search more quickly and thoroughly than just two of them. Duo's response to their refusal surprised him, though.

"You know, actually, I'm kinda glad. You've never met her and don't really, well, feel for her. For me and Heero, it's personal, so we'll keep looking, no matter what. You guys just don't have that kind of drive, so I think it's a good thing you're going to let us take care of this."

Heero thought about that for a moment and then nodded. "I agree. You two haven't met her and we were the ones who promised to help her. She ended up helping us, and now we are in her debt, so we should be the ones to free her."

Duo smiled, pleased that Heero had agreed with him, while Quatre and Trowa exchanged a look, uncertain how to respond.

"Okay, guys, I think that pretty much covers the important stuff we needed to discuss. Quatre, even if you don't believe in Katherine, does the fact that a murder took place here explain what you sensed?"

Quatre hesitated and then nodded slowly, looking thoughtful. "Most of it. Although it's unusual for it to be so strong after such a length of time, it's not unheard of."

"Cool. Heero and I have some things we need to discuss in private, so, unless there are any objections, I vote Heero and I finish cleaning up and head on up to bed. You two are free to explore, stay here and chat, or whatever."

"Bed sounds like a good idea, Duo." Trowa appeared to agree with Quatre, so Duo looked at Heero.

"I'll finish cleaning up. Why don't you show them to their rooms and I'll be up in a few minutes?"

Quatre and Trowa wished Heero a good night and then followed Duo as he led the way, the ghost trailing after them. There was a brief, but amusing, scuffle at the stairs, when Trowa decided Quatre hadn't regained enough energy to tackle the climb and simply threw Quatre over his shoulder in a fireman's carry and headed up, ignoring Duo's laughter and Quatre's loud protests.

At the top of the stairs, Duo, still laughing, pointed out the rooms that had been prepared for the two, and a red-faced Quatre vanished through one of the doors as soon as his feet touched the floor, barely taking the time to bid Duo a good night. Trowa nodded slightly at Duo, who waived back at him, before going into his own room and shutting the door behind him. Duo shook his head at the two closed doors before heading off to the bedroom he was sharing with Heero. The ghost remained at the top of the stairs, trying to decide which couple to eavesdrop on.

Before a decision could be made, however, Quatre's door opened and he stepped out, looking around quickly. Not seeing anyone, he walked over to Trowa's door and quietly rapped on it. Trowa, expecting the knock, called to him to enter and he did, the curious ghost following.

When Quatre walked in, he found Trowa sitting at a desk, working on a laptop Heero had set up for him, filing the last of his mission reports. Quatre sat on the foot of the bed and waited quietly for Trowa to finish.

Several minutes passed before Trowa signed off, closed the laptop, and then turned his chair to face Quatre.

As soon as he was certain he had Trowa's full attention, Quatre said, "That was unnecessary, Trowa, and, while I appreciate that you were trying to help me, I don't like the way you did it. I'm not a small child, Trowa. I don't need to be carried off to bed."

Trowa's mouth quirked, his version of a grin. "I didn't carry you off to bed, merely up the stairs. You could not have made the climb in your current state of exhaustion and you are too stubborn to ask for help. And, I do not consider you a child."

Quatre blinked at him, surprised. He hadn't expected Trowa to actually say anything in response to his complaint, but to raise an eyebrow or shrug at him, as usual. It almost seemed like Trowa was flirting with him. "Trowa?"

Ignoring Quatre's question, Trowa asked one of his own. "Why aren't you in bed already? You're tired enough to have passed out an hour ago."

Frowning slightly at him, Quatre answered, "Something about this house and what Heero and Duo said is bothering me. It doesn't fit."

Trowa waited, without comment, so Quatre continued. "I sensed many negative emotions, such as grief, rage, loneliness, hatred, and a desperate need, and those could all be explained by the story they told. The thing is, I also sensed guilt and regret, every bit as strong as the other emotions."

Trowa frowned slightly and Quatre nodded.

"I know, it doesn't make sense, and that's why it bothers me. Katherine has no reason to feel guilty, at least, not that we know of. And I'm still not comfortable with the strength of the emotions. I was understating the rarity of it when I said that such strength after so long was possible."

Their invisible listener decided that it was finally time to make an appearance and materialized near the door. "Our presence is what keeps the emotions so strong. And the guilt, regret, and hatred would be my contribution," he said. "My name is Benjamin."


	16. Chapter 16

Author's Notes:

Yes, it's an actual honest-to-God update. Keeping in mind that I don't write as well for Quatre and Trowa, and it's been a long while since I wrote on this story, hey, at least I'm continuing it, and I never thought I would. You can thank Sir Gawain of Camelot on for that. I have had a few other reviews that have made me think about it, but his was the one that really made me decide to go ahead and continue the story. So, read on! I hope you enjoy it!

Helping Hands part 16

Quatre and Trowa both jumped to their feet in reaction to the sudden appearance of the ghost, but neither drew a weapon. Quatre, because he currently didn't have one on him, and Trowa, because he had seen the apparition appear out of thin air. Even if the image before them wasn't a ghost, he was probably a hologram or some other form of illusion that couldn't be harmed. Benjamin simply waited for them to decide on their next move.

The two Gundam pilots exchanged glances and then Quatre sat back down on the bed while Trowa moved towards Benjamin, intending to examine him. Benjamin had no objection to this, and stood quietly while Trowa looked for mini-projectors or other devices that could have created the person standing before them. He examined the area all around Benjamin, then the area where Benjamin stood, asking the ghost to move aside with a gesture. Benjamin complied without complaint, waiting patiently for Trowa to finish his investigation.

Trowa frowned when he couldn't find anything, and, as a final test, passed a hand through Benjamin's body, proving he wasn't solid. Trowa's frown grew at the frigid cold he felt when he passed his hand through the area where the ghost stood. Shaking his head slightly, Trowa turned to look at Quatre, "I can't find anything. And the air is very cold where he is standing." Quatre nodded an acknowledgement of Trowa's findings and Trowa walked back across the room to sit back down in his chair, turning the chair so that he could see both of the other occupants of the room while he sat.

While Trowa got himself situated, Benjamin and Quatre and been simply staring at one another. They continued to do so after Trowa sat down, until Quatre finally broke the silence. "I thought Katherine was supposed to be the one haunting the house. Heero and Duo didn't say anything about you. And what do you mean you are the source of the guilt, regret, and hatred?"

Benjamin sighed, heavily. "What do you know about ghosts? I mean, what have you heard?"

Quatre and Trowa looked at each other and Quatre shrugged. "I never believed in ghosts, so I never paid much attention to any stories about them."

Trowa said, "They are supposedly the spirits of people with unfinished business. People who can't let go of something and move on."

Benjamin nodded, looking at Trowa. He appeared to them to be a fairly young man, in his late 30s, dressed in an early 21st century business suit. He had made no threatening moves and, obviously having no physical form, could not really hurt them, so the two pilots relaxed slightly as he thought for a moment, trying to decide what to tell them.

"Katherine's death was completely unexpected by her. She doesn't know if it was an accident or if she was deliberately murdered. She is clinging to this world until she finds out the truth of how she died. The emotions surrounding her death, the shock of it, the betrayal she felt at dying, those are what are keeping her here."

Quatre nodded thoughtfully. "I suppose I can understand that. And why are you here?"

"Because she is," was the simple response. One that Quatre had not expected. He stared at Benjamin in shock.

"Are you saying that you deliberately chose to haunt this house when you died because you knew that she was here?"

Benjamin nodded, and then frowned. "Yes and no. It's not that simple." He looked at Quatre and their eyes met. "I know your friends told you our history, mine and Katherine's. I know they told you what happened at Katherine's funeral. The rage, the hatred I felt towards her killer, they never left me. Especially after I found out that her spirit was trapped here."

They stared at one another and Quatre did not dare let his empathy touch the being before him. He could see the emotions that Benjamin spoke of reflected in his eyes and they frightened Quatre. He had never seen such intense emotions before, and he suddenly realized that they matched what he had sensed from the house perfectly.

"THAT'S ENOUGH!"

Quatre and Benjamin both started and turned to look at Trowa in surprise. They had gotten so caught up in their staring contest that they had both forgotten that he was in the room. He was no longer sitting in his chair, and as they reacted to his shout, he moved to place himself between the two of them, glaring at Benjamin.

Benjamin, immediately backed away, raising his hands, palms out, in a gesture of peace. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean for that to happen. It has been a very long time since I have interacted with anyone, much less an empath."

"It's alright," Quatre said, rising to his feet, and moving to stand beside Trowa. "You didn't actually harm me. It's just that the intensity of your emotions is a little overwhelming, even when I don't touch you with my empathy. Trowa's just being a little overprotective right now." Trowa refused to relax from his guard position, keeping himself between Quatre and Benjamin.

"Benjamin, why have you shown yourself to us? What was the reason for this?" Quatre asked. "Heero and Duo are already searching for the journal to set Katherine free. With those two working on it, surely the two of you would be freed without Trowa and me ever becoming involved."

"I don't know," Benjamin answered, shaking his head. He dropped his hands to his sides and then ran a hand through his hair, obviously slightly frustrated. "I don't understand it, but something told me it was time. Katherine has Heero and Duo, but I'm stuck with you two."

Quatre frowned at him, not exactly sure how to respond. Trowa didn't hesitate. "Then, go. It is not necessary for you to be 'stuck' with us."

Benjamin glared at him and started to speak then stopped. He looked at the way the two of them were standing, Trowa protecting Quatre, and smirked at them. "You know what? I think I will leave. For now. This didn't go at all the way I planned, and for that, I'm sorry. But at least it gave me an idea. And, I think I've got you convinced that the house really is haunted. That's something. See you around." He faded from view.

Quatre and Trowa didn't move for a moment and then Quatre sighed and went and sat back down on Trowa's bed again. "That was certainly an interesting experience. I wonder what he meant about being 'stuck' with us? As though he was to be our partner in some endeavor. And he's right, I'm definitely convinced he's a real ghost. I don't like this, Trowa."

Trowa turned to frown at him, and, instead of sitting back down in his chair in front of the desk, he sat down on the bed beside Quatre. Quatre turned to look at him, frowning himself when he realized that Trowa had dismissed Benjamin and was again looking at Quatre with concern.

"Trowa, I really wish you would stop mothering me. I'm fine."

Trowa looked back at him and surprised Quatre by again speaking his thoughts aloud. "No, you are not fine. You are tired and weary and need to rest. You are my partner, and when you are like this, it is my job to take care of you."

It was then Trowa's turn to be surprised. Quatre's expression darkened and he abruptly got to his feet. "It's bad enough that you're mothering me constantly, I don't need to be told that the only reason you're doing it is because of the mission. We're not on a mission right now, so stay the hell away from me, Trowa." He headed for the door.

"Quatre, that's not what I…" he was cut off when the door slammed shut. Trowa sighed heavily. He took care of Quatre because he cared about him. Normally, Quatre was aware of that, although he was not aware of just how much Trowa cared for Quatre.

Trowa was in love with Quatre, but he did not consider himself worthy of Quatre. So, Trowa would work with him, fight beside him, and help and protect him to the best of his ability. What else was there for someone whose true name was Noname?

XXXXXXXXXXXX

In the next room, Quatre was calling himself several kinds of idiot. "I know Trowa didn't mean it that way. It just hurt when he said it like that. Like that's all I mean to him. Like that's all I can ever mean to him."

Quatre sighed and threw himself down onto his back on his bed. "I'm such a fool. Heero and Duo are finally together. And I'm happy for them. It just makes me wish that something like that could happen for me and Trowa. I mean, I know Trowa cares about me, but I don't know if he feels like that about me. My own desires make my empathy unreliable when it comes to something like this, and I don't even know what his sexual preferences are. We've never really talked about it, for some reason. You would think sex would come up at some point, considering we're teenagers, but, with the missions, and all…"

He sighed and rolled over onto his stomach, quickly falling into an exhausted sleep. Benjamin, who'd been in the room, invisible, watching Quatre, muttered softly to himself, "Okay, that gives me a starting point. Let's see what we can find out." He walked through the wall, separating Quatre's room from Trowa's.

Tbc…

And yes, I do actually mean to continue it. I don't know when I'll be able to, since I have a lot going on right now, but I will eventually post another chapter. And hopefully, it won't take me years to do it. Read and Review, please!


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